Irresistible Proposition
by THE best THING about ME is YOU
Summary: Bella's jobless thanks 2 Edward & is in need of money 2 take care of a bedridden Charlie. Edward is in need of a wife 2 close a deal. Edward makes Bella an offer she cant refuse, but how will they pretend 2 be husband & wife when they hate 1 another?
1. Taking Charge

**A/N: **

**Hello to everyone. So here is a new story for ya'll to read. I am breaking a rule of mine and decided to post a new story while my other one, _The Interview That Changed Everything_, still is not complete. This story came to me about two months ago and was just begging to be written. So here it is.**

**Update 12/27/12**

**As some of you may know I've had a few people comment saying my story was hard to read due to the amount of errors, however thanks to TwilightMom505 the errors have been corrected. Now the story flows better and actually makes sense. So a special thanks to my new beta! Couldn't have done it without you!**

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own Twilight or any of it characters… inspiration for this story came from a movie I seen on lifetime although I can't remember what it was called. However the story will be made into my own. -Just using the general idea of the movie.**

**Irresistible Proposition**

**Chapter 1**

**Taking Charge**

**BPOV**

Hello my name is Isabella Marie Swan, but I prefer to be called Bella.

I live with my dad in a tiny two story-Victorian house that is on the brink of falling to pieces in a tiny town called Forks. It's only about 140 miles from Seattle. My truck is a 1953 rusted and faded red Chevrolet. It's old, but it gets me from point A to B.

I have exactly eight dollars and thirty-five cents in my homemade blue jean purse, and in both my checking and savings accounts, it's even lower. Well I take that back;my savings account has the twenty dollars that is needed to keep it open.

I am twenty-three years old and have been working for the Masen Corp Warehouse for five years now. The pay is okay. I am sure I could find a better job somewhere else, but now days, if you have a job you need to keep it because they are really rare to come by especially in this diminutive town.

Besides my employer, Mr. Masen, is the sweetest man in the world. The paychecks never really last too long after the bills are paid, but then again, whose paycheck really does?

I guess you're wondering why a girl my age is working forty plus hours a week when she should be in college. The answer is simple. You see my dad Charlie fell ill my senior year of high school and still has to have constant care. As soon as I graduated, I plunged head first into this job in order to support both of us.

Everything was going great until the polite and thoughtful Mr. Masen suddenly died.

That's when everything got shot to shit.

**EPOV**

My name is Edward Anthony Masen, the second.

I am 25 years old.

I own 18 warehouses, 7 crab boats, 2 cruise ships, 5 mansions, 14 vehicles and the head office known worldwide as, Masen Corp, located right here in the beautiful Seattle.

My dad passed away about two months ago.

Although I was ready for the responsibility of taking over all my dad's businesses, I have to say I wish it was under better circumstances.

Like oh, say my dad retiring and spending the rest of his time traveling the world like he always wanted to. However, this was not the case. His death was unexpected and left everyone that worked for him sad. Even the ones who never even saw him sent flowers and their condolences.

I am the sole survivor of the Masen family.

I snapped out of my thoughts when my secretary brought in my coffee and the Monday morning reports for all the warehouses.

"Here you go, Mr. Masen," Lauren said in her sickly sweet voice which agitated me more than anything.

She was one of those girls who tried way too hard. She had fake blonde hair that looked fried, big fake boobs that were uneven and walked with her ass sticking out like she had a corn cob stuck up it. She did this day in and day out.

She sat the hot cup on my desk, making sure that she bent down low enough so that the crease of her cleavage would be exposed through the red v-neck shirt she was wearing and waited for me to say something. I rolled my eyes and looked down at the reports. I had to choose my words carefully around her. I could say something along the lines of 'thank you, you are on top of your game today', and by tomorrow, everybody around here would have heard something about me saying that I wanted to be on top of her.

It was like that game you played in school -telephone. You know where somebody says something in one person's ear, and they whisper in the next person's ear and so on until it reaches the last person, and it's something total different from what had been said at the beginning of the line.

Only Lauren never even tried to hear what was actually said.

She has been after me for years. My father hired her when she was twenty-one, and I just so happen to come to the office that day. When she saw me, it was like she had this deranged thought that I was her soul mate.

Soul mate… ha! I don't believe in that. Hell, I loved living the single life. I could do whatever and who the hell I wanted. Yes sir it was wonderful being me, up until two months ago. My dad was all I had left as far as blood relatives. My mother Elizabeth passed away when giving birth to me.

Now, I'm alone.

Lauren cleared her throat in hopes that I would remember she was there. I had no problem remembering that she was taking up precious space in my office because her cheap ass perfume filled my nostrils and made my stomach churn at the revolting smell.

"You're dismissed," I said in a voice that no one in their right mind would consider to be friendly, and I was glad to see her face fall as she took it in that I was not playing her little game.

She quickly walked out of my office and closed the door behind her. Well that's one 'headache' out of the way for today, I thought to myself as I picked up the cup and took a sip.

I quickly spit it back in the cup. Damn bitch can't even make a good cup of coffee.

Sighing, I picked up my cell phone from the desk and called Carlisle. He was one of my dad's most trusted employees and was now my right hand man just as he had been my father's before. He pretty much ran my father's company for me when I was in mourning. He was an excellent person to have on my team, and I could count on him for anything.

He picked up on the second ring.

"Hello?"

"Carlisle. Good morning."

"Good morning, Mr. Masen."

"Carlisle, I've told you time and time again to call me Edward."

He used to call me by my first name all the time until my father died, and I became his boss. Now he was too serious when he talked to me. The man was the same age as my father and was like a second father given the number of years that I had known him.

"What can I do for you Edward?"

"Can you come in an hour early?"

"Sure, no problem. Is everything alright?" His voice sounded worried.

"Yes, I just want to go over the reports, and I also need a good cup of coffee. Could you stop by Starbucks?"

"I sure can. See you in a bit."

I hung up the phone and decided to go through some of the reports on my own. I was about halfway through them when I noticed that one of our warehouses was not making any profit. Hell, it wasn't even breaking even anymore.

I pulled the paper off the desk and brought it up to my eyes so I could examine it closer. I needed to find out where this one was located.

As I found the text on the paper, I read it out loud.

"Forks, Washington." Hmm that was that little town not too far away from here.

I picked up the office phone and pushed the red button.

"Yes, Mr. Masen?"

Her voice was like nails on a chalk board.

"Lauren, can you please pull the reports for warehouse number eleven that is located in Forks. Go back twelve months."

"Sure thi-"

I hung up before she could finish.

By the time Carlisle arrived with my coffee, I had already called Jasper in, and we were both looking at the paperwork.

If Carlisle was my right hand man then Jasper was my left. Though he was my age, he could keep up with Carlisle no problem, and when it came to talking business, he was simply brilliant. He was in charge of getting new clients and figuring out which companies would be better for us to invest in.

Carlisle handed me my coffee and took a seat.

"What did I miss?"

"Well after I got off the phone with you, I decided to go ahead and look at the reports, and I noticed that one of the warehouses is not even breaking even anymore. So, I got Lauren to pull up the information on it over the last twelve months, and it turns out that it has not made a profit at all, in the past year. So my question is: why is it still open?"

Carlisle cleared his throat and spoke up.

"Well, Edward, you know your father. He didn't have the heart to shut it down and put all of his employees out of work."

He was right; my father was a very compassionate man, but that was also his down fall.

"Well, I'm not my father. I say we cut our losses and shut it down. We can always sell the warehouse to someone else or market something new."

Carlisle looked disappointed but didn't say a word.

"Okay then let's move on. Jasper, how is everything going with our sister company?"

This was something my dad had done when I was just a child. He felt the need to have a sister company. That way if something should happen and Masen Corp. was to ever go under, we would always have income coming in from somewhere.

However, Masen Corp. had been running strong for years and years. I personally didn't think we needed the sister company.

Not to mention, I thought them to be low class idiots. We were keeping them afloat, not the other way around.

Jasper cleared his throat and began.

"Well, Edward, I think everything is going as well as to be expected. They are still annoying as hell to talk to, but they are still making the percentage of the profit they are supposed to, so there is no way we could cut them loose. Yet, anyway."

My head snapped up.

"What do you mean yet?"

"Well, they have only been making a fifty-six percent profit for the last three months, so if it falls another seven percent, we can legally break the contract and cut them lose."

The contract that my dad made with Billy Black or Quileute Industries is that if either company, ours or theirs, were to drop below fifty percent in their profits, we could cut them lose. So far, they have been maintaining the profit margin, barely, so we legally had no ground to terminate the contract.

"Well shit, let's hope it drops soon. I really would rather us not have ties with them once Jacob takes over the company."

"Well, Boss, it looks as if that is not possible. I heard that Billy has already started to hand the reins over to Jacob."

Sighing, I ran my hands through my hair.

"Okay, Jasper, this is what I need you to do then. Call and set up an appointment with Jacob for…"

I pulled out my calendar and looked to see what week would be best for me. If I was going to be stuck dealing with that scaly snake, Jacob, then it was going to be at a time of my choosing.

"Thursday, November 16. Oh and, Carlisle, I need you to make arranges for us to be down in Forks on Tuesday, November 14 to let the employees know that the warehouse will be shutting down on November 30.

"Yes, Sir."

"Okay, Jasper, have you heard anything from Aro?"

"No, not really, he keeps saying that he will meet with me to discuss his terms of selling the Family Entertaining cruise line, but he hasn't tried to make contact with me yet, and I have left several messages with his secretary."

"Okay, well keep trying but don't push him too much"

"You got it, Boss,"

"Alright gentlemen, you both have your assignment. This meeting is finished."

They both stood up and left my office while I sat there and looked out the window, massaging my temples to relieve the headache I could feel coming on. This was going to be one hell of a long week.

I stood there at the podium in front of all my employees. Carlisle had gathered them all for this meeting. Some looked worried while others looked happy.

Unfortunately, that look would soon be wiped off of their faces once they heard the news that I was delivering to them.

"I would like to thank you all for the dedication and hard work you have been doing these past few years, but unfortunately, as you all know, my father passed away, and I have inherited his corporations. I am in the process of making a few changes, and I am very sorry to inform you that this warehouse will be shutting down on November 30."

I paused before I continued due to the number of gasps and cries of anger coming from the crowd.

Some shouted profanities at me while others asked how I could do something like this.

"I realize it is close to the holidays, so to help you all out, each one of you will be given a one thousand dollar bonus to leave with. I hope this helps everyone out and best of luck to you in the future."

With that being said, I walked away from the podium and out the warehouse to my car that was waiting to drive me back to Seattle.

I was finished with this and was not going to draw it out any longer than I had to. I owed them no explanation as to why I was closing it down; therefore, they wouldn't get one.

**BPOV**

It was Wednesday when I returned to work. I had to have the day off Tuesday to bring Charlie to his checkup.

Man his medical bills were getting more expensive every time I turned around.

I was going to ask if I could have some over time this week to help cover them.

When I walked into the warehouse, the first thing I noticed was that the atmosphere wasn't as festive as it usually was. Instead, everyone was mumbling and had pissed off looks on their faces.

I wondered what's going on?

I walked up to my station and sat down on the stool. I noticed that even Angela, my partner in crime, had an angry look on her face.

"Angela, what's going on with everybody today?"

She looked up at me and sighed.

"Bella, I have some bad news."

Uh oh, the last time she told me that was when I received the news about Mr. Masen's passing. I prepared myself by taking a deep breath.

"Bella, yesterday when you were off, we had Mr. Masen's son come down and talk to us. He let us know that he will be shutting down the warehouse on November 30."

"WHAT?" I screamed and got up so fast that the stool that I was sitting on fell backwards causing a loud clanking noise.

"Angela, please tell me this is some kind of joke."

"I'm sorry. I wish I could, but it's not. Oh, I did forget to tell you that he is giving everyone a one thousand dollar bonus to leave with."

A thousand dollars?

Does that arrogant pig really think that he can make it all better by giving us a thousand dollars after he just gave us the worst news that we could hear?

That won't even cover a month's worth of bills. What am I going to do? What about Charlie? He still requires medical attention.

I see nothing but red at that point in time.

"Angela, is he still here in Forks?"

"Oh no, I don't think so, Bella. I think he is already back at the head office in Seattle."

"Well, Angela, then that's where I am going."

I grabbed my keys and prayed that my raggedy old truck would make it that far.

"Bella, you can't."

Angela grabbed my arm in an effort to stop me, but let it go after I gave her a look of fury.

"Angela, can you please take care of Charlie while I am gone. I shouldn't be gone for more than a day. I will be back sometime tomorrow."

"Sure Bella, no problem. Just please don't do anything stupid."

**EPOV**

I was sitting in my office in a meeting with Jacob Black.

I could feel my anger boiling over because of this imbecile that was sitting in front of me.

"Like I told you before, Jacob, this is not a threat. This is more of a warning that if you can't get your profits back up before it goes below fifty percent, we will let you go."

"I disagree, Edward."

"About what, Jacob?"

"That this isn't a threat. My father and I know that you have wanted to cut us loose for some time now."

"That may be true Jacob, but I am a smart business man and will not do anything to jeopardize my company and that includes breaking a contract when I have no grounds to do so."

The tan black haired-man sat there looking at me with his lips in a tight line not knowing what else to say to that.

I was just about to dismiss Jacob when Jasper barged into my office.

"Edward, I have the most amazing news. Aro finally returned my calls and gave me the list of terms we have to meet for him to sell his company to us."

I looked over at Jacob who suddenly perked up and was listening very hard to the conversation between Jasper and me.

Sighing, I realized that the cat was out of the bag now, so I just let him continue.

"What are they, Jasper? "

He looked down at the paperwork in his hand and then handed it to me.

I read the paperwork, and then, I think my eyes bulged out.

"I have to be married?"

I looked up at Jasper with a look of panic on my face.

"Yes, Boss, that seems to be his only request. Apparently being that his cruise line is based around family, he didn't want to sell it to anyone who was not family oriented.

"Well shit, Jasper, that knocks us out of the running."

"Oh, it does? You mean you're not married?"

Jasper gave me a sly smile

"Jasper, what the hell did you do?"

**BPOV**

I pulled into the parking lot and cut the engine of my poor truck off.

Poor thing, I should not have pushed it that hard, but I was just so angry that I had no choice.

I went straight home from the warehouse, packed a bag, and waited for Angela to get off of work so I could give her instructions.

I ended up leaving around six in the afternoon, but by the time I got to Seattle, the head office was closed, and I had to stay in a hotel for the night.

I ended up sleeping a little later than I should have which is why I am here at two-thirty in the afternoon inside of early in the morning like I had hoped.

I entered the fancy building and walked to the elevator.

How convenient.

They had everyone listed on a plaque right in between the two elevators.

I quickly looked up Edward Masen and pushed the elevator button. As soon as the doors opened I stepped inside and pushed the highest number there was.

Floor number forty-five.

Okay, Bella, just don't look out the windows, and you will be okay.

When the elevator doors opened and revealed that I was on the forty fifth floor, I stepped out and walked up to the only desk that was in the area.

I cleared my throat only to be ignored by the trashy looking blonde that was filing her nails.

After a few moments passed and she still did not acknowledge me, I spoke up.

"Excuse me?"

She looked up lazily at me. "Can I help you?"

"Yes, is Mr. Masen in?"

"Do you have an appointment to see him?"

"No. I don't."

"Then there is nothing I can do. Goodbye." She went back to filing her nails.

I slammed my hand down on the desk.

"That's not a good enough answer for me."

"Look, lady, if you don't have an appointment, you can't see Mr. Masen"

"THE HELL I CANT!"

I turned from her desk and started for the door that had Mr. Masen's golden name plate on it. She quickly ran in front of me to block me from the door, but I pushed her out of the way.

I threw open the door and stepped inside.

There were three men who were all looking at me like I was crazy.

**EPOV**

"Well, Edward, I might have told Aro that you were married."

I heard an uproar of laughter coming from Jacob.

"You did WHAT?"

"Come on, Edward, it's a good plan. I mean really, how hard is it going to be to find someone to pretend to be married to you. Most girls would give there right arm just to say hi to you."

"Pretty damn hard, Jasper. Girls get attached too easily. Fuck, what the hell am I going to do?"

"Well you could always pay someone."

"Oh thanks ,Jasper, now you are making me sound desperate."

"No, Dude, I think it's a good plan. You see you pay her to be married to you, no strings attached. She knows everything from the very beginning. Then once we get the cruise line, you can "divorce" her due to her cheating on you or something."

"Jasper, I don't know about that…."

I didn't get a chance to finish my sentence because all the sudden my door was slammed open, and a beautiful lady stormed through, breathing heavily.

Lauren came in then and tried to grab the girls arm only to have it yanked back out of her grasp.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Masen. I couldn't stop her."

Jasper waved her off and she quickly exited the room.

"Edward Masen?"

"Yes, that's me can I help yo-"

SLAP!

"You're an asshole, Mr. Masen!"

Rubbing my cheek, I was momentarily stunned. Who the hell was this bitch, and why did she slap me?

"What are you talking about?"

I looked around to Jacob and Jasper who had looks of both amusement and disbelief on their faces.

"Oh nothing, Mr. Masen. I am just one of the people who has two weeks left before I am out of a job."

Then it snapped in my brain. Damn, I did not feel like dealing with this today.

"Look Miss….?"

"Swan."

"Miss Swan, I am deeply sorry. I am, but there are other jobs out there; you just have to look and not be so lazy."

"How dare you call me lazy! Since I was eighteen, I have worked my ass off at that warehouse, working forty plus hours a week, and then I go home to take care of my dad who has been bedridden for going on five years. I have worked side jobs watching people kids and cleaning houses on top of my forty some odd hours. We have medical bills stacked to the ceiling, and I have been wearing myself out trying keep on top of all the other bills I have, but I don't expect a spoiled, selfish, arrogant asshole like yourself to know what that's like."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"It means that if you actually had to work for what you have and live from paycheck to paycheck rather than have everything handed to you on a silver platter, you would have thought twice about shutting down that warehouse."

"Miss. Swan, don't blame me just because we are on opposite sides of the fence. I can't help the success that I was born into, just like you can't help the life that you were given. You work with the hand that you are dealt. Now if you will excuse me, I have plenty of work to attend to, so I am going to ask you kindly to get the fuck out of my office."

"Alright, Mr. Masen, I will leave, but I wonder would it be so easy for you to say that if you were dealt the hand that I was given?"

And with that the brown haired, doe eyed- girl walked out of my office in sobs.

I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. My cheek still stung a little from where she slapped it.

"Come on, Edward, forget about her, Man. We got other things to worry about," Jasper said as he went over and shut the door.

"You're right, Man. Now where are we going to find a girl that I can pay to be my wife?"

Just then Lauren walked in.

Mr. Masen, I have the psycho in security's hands.

"Alright, thanks."

Lauren walked out of my office, and Jasper gave me a look.

"Whatever you are thinking, Jasper, not no, but hell no. There is no way I am going to ask Lauren to be my pretend wife."

"No, no man, I would rather we lose the deal than have you even give that mutant a second glance. I was thinking more along the lines of Miss. Swan."

I gave him a look of disbelief. Is he crazy? The woman hates me. And I've got to tell you, I am not to fond of her either.

"Come on, man. She could use the money, and from what I've seen of her, she looks very ''wifely ."

Sighing, I knew he was right. I knew what I had to do. I had no choice in the matter. I got up from my chair and walked out of my office dreading what I was about to have to do.

**A/N: **

**Okay so what do you think? Is it worth continuing? Be sure to write me lots of reviews and let me know.**

** Pictures of Bella's truck and house are on my profile if you are interested**

**Also if you have not had a chance to read**

_**The Interview That Changed Everything**_

**then please go and check it out. I would love to hear from you.**

**Thank you so much for reading.**


	2. Negotiations

**A/N: Wow thank you guys so much for all the reviews, favorites, and alerts. I really appreciate it. I am so glad that people have taken an interest in this story. I hope I can keep yall's interest and continue to meet new people through the reviews.**

**Also WOW I just seen one of the previews for Eclipse and let me just say it looks freakin awesome… I can't wait till it comes out.**

**Update 12/30/12: **

**As some of you may know I've had a few people comment saying my story was hard to read due to the amount of errors, however thanks to TwilightMom505 the errors have been corrected. Now the story flows better and actually makes sense. So a special thanks to my new beta! Couldn't have done it without you! **

**Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and has a safe and Happy New Year!**

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own Twilight or any of the characters. It all belongs to SM**

**Chapter 2**

**Negotiations**

**BPOV**

What was it that Angela told me?

Oh yeah…not to do anything stupid!

Well that went in one ear and right out the other.

I was escorted by security down to an undersized white walled room that was no bigger than my bathroom back at my house. It had a small square card table in the middle of the room that appeared to be bolted to the floor. There were two metal chairs on opposite sides of the table.

There were long bulb lights that had a flickering glow to them lined up on the ceiling. It had a faint smell of fresh paint and cigarette smoke.

I half expected there to be a two way-mirror, but to my surprise, there was not. However, there was a camera up in the far right hand-corner of the room. There was no doubt in my mind that I was being watched from a secure room in another area of the building.

"Sit here," The guy with long sandy-blonde hair said as he pulled out the chair and roughly pushed me in it.

What an asshole.

The next guy who had long black braided hair and a dark complexion came over and grabbed my right wrist and handcuffed me to one of the legs of the table.

"Is this really necessary?" I asked, trying to pull on the handcuffs, but it was no use, they were not budging. They were only making a clanking sound and leaving angry red marks on my wrist.

Just then the door opened up and in walked none other than Mr. Masen.

"James, Laurent, leave!" Mr. Masen's voice had authority and strength to it. It sent a shiver down my spine.

James walked out of the room with a sneer on his face.

Before leaving, Laurent gave Edward the handcuff key and shut the door behind him.

Edward pulled out the chair, the legs sliding on the tiled floor making a horrible scraping sound, and sat down directly in front of me.

He put his hands on the table and clasped them together tightly. His lips were in a tight line. He closed his eyes for a mere second and inhaled deeply.

Once he exhaled, he opened his eyes to look into mine.

"Miss Swan, do you know why you're here?"

So now he was going to be sarcastic about this? Was he trying to patronize me? Well two can play that game.

"Yes, Mr. Masen, I do know why I am here. Clearly you don't remember though."

I leaned over the table to get closer to him and in a taunting voice, I asked, "Did I hit you too hard?"

I pulled back and smirked at him.

Edward brought his hand up to his cheek as if he remembered it perfectly.

Good. The jerk had it coming to him.

"Ok let's try something else, shall we?" His voice sounded irate.

I just stared at him with the smirk still on my face. I thought it was funny how James and Laurent were intimidated by Edward, only to find Edward being intimidated by me.

Well at least I hope I was a little bit intimidating to him.

"Miss Swan, do you comprehend the seriousness of this situation?"

"Yes, I do, Mr. Masen. I understand that I am handcuffed to a table all because your fake ass receptionist couldn't handle the situation herself and had to call security."

He stood up and slammed his fist on the table causing me to jump a little, and in a voice that was dripping with fury, he spoke. "Alright enough of this, Miss Swan. Since you burst into my office and attacked me, I have grounds to file charges against you. Which, given your circumstances, I don't think you would like very much since you will be dragged off to jail and will have to pay a fine before you can be released. We both know you can't afford it."

Well shit. How low could that bastard get? Knowing my financial state and using it against me.

As much as I hated to admit it, he had me. I was licked!

"Ok, you have my attention, Mr. Masen. What is it that you want?"

He sat back down in the chair with a sly smile on his face. He knew he had won.

"Well, Miss Swan, I have a proposition for you."

What?

I didn't see that coming.

"A proposition?" I asked, flabbergasted.

"Yes, Miss. Swan, it seems that you and I are both in a bind. You see, I am in the mist of trying to close an important business transaction; however, the company that I would like to purchase requires that I be married."

Wanting him to get straight to the point and stop beating around the bush, I interrupted him.

"Mr. Masen, this is all very fascinating, really it is, but what does that have to do with me?"

"If you let me finish, you will see. Would you kindly listen to me without any further interruptions?"

I squinted my eyes at him before answering. "Fine, continue."

I sighed and tried to cross my arms, but the one that was handcuffed hindered me from doing so.

"Like I was saying, they want me to be married."

"And I take it you're not?"

Suddenly it was starting to become clear what his proposition was going to be.

"No, but Jasper told them that I already was. This account is very important to us, and we have been trying to acquire it for quite some time. Jasper did what anybody would do in hopes of closing the deal once and for all."

"You mean he lied? And now it would appear that his less than honest answer has created a bit of a predicament for you."

"Look, Miss Swan, this is business, and we do what we have to in order to survive."

"So deceiving someone makes no never mind to you?"

Mr. Masen pinched the bridge of his nose. He was getting frustrated with me, but at this point, I really couldn't find it in myself to care.

"Look, Miss Swan, I am not saying what he did was right, but it's already been done. Now here is my proposition for you."

I straightened up and leaned closer to him to make sure I heard everything that he was going to say.

"I realize now that my actions of shutting down the warehouse put a lot of people out of jobs, you included, and I am very sorry about that, but it was something that needed to be done for quite some time."

"Mr. Masen, I hear what you're saying, but you're rattling on about stuff that I already know. Please, just get straight to the point."

"Very well, Miss Swan, I am in need of a fake wife. You are in need of money. I think it would make sense for us to pull together and help each other out."

"So you want to pay me to be your 'pretend wife'?" I moved my hands in the air making the quotation marks.

"Am I interpreting this correctly?

"Yes, that is exactly what I want you to do."

I stood up from my chair so fast that it flipped over behind me. I tried to rise to my full height, but I was hunched over due to the handcuffs keeping me bound to the table.

"YOU BASTARD! YOU'RE COERCING ME!"

I was furious. At this point, I saw that both options were shit, and one was no better than the other. I would have to be put in jail or pretend to be married to this odious man before me.

"Miss Swan, kindly lower your voice. I am close enough to you that I can hear you fine without you yelling bloody murder. No, I am not coercing you. I am merely giving you two choices. All you have to do is pick one."

"How can I choose one? Both are a prison of some kind."

"No, they're not. The second option unlike, the first, keeps you out of jail, and you will walk away with money in your pocket. I think that's a hell of a lot better than choice number one."

"Why me? I am sure you can find any number of girls who you wouldn't even have to pay. Someone who doesn't loath you as much as I do. "

"True, but I don't want them. I want you. I don't need nor want a girl who is going to think this will go somewhere afterwards. I need someone who is in it for the business deal. Someone who, once this is over, takes her money, and we both go our separate ways."

"I see."

"Great! So then do we have a deal, Miss Swan?"

"Whoa, slow down there big boy. We only discussed your terms; we haven't discussed any of mine."

"Very well. Please tell me what it is that you would like."

"First of all, I would like you to release me from these damn handcuffs." I picked my arm up so that he could be reminded of it.

"I think that can be arranged. What else?"

He walked around the table and kneeled down on one knee. He turned the silver key in the opening and unlocked the restraint on my wrist. He picked the chair up and set it upright on the ground once more.

"Also there is a matter of my father, money, and living arrangements; how long this charade will go on; and a few other of minor details."

"Very well, let's discuss your father first. I remember you told me he is bedridden. Right?"

"Yes, and because of that, he has to have constant care. I hate to leave him by himself."

"So then who is taking care of him now? A live in nurse?"

"No, I used to have a nurse come during the day while I was busy at work; however, since I lost my job, I have had to let her go. My friend Angela, who also worked in your warehouse, is with him as we speak."

"Okay, so then, what if I were to pay a live in nurse to care for him while you are helping me out? Will that make you feel more comfortable?"

"I would like my friend Angela to be the one to take care of him. He is comfortable with her, and it would give her a source of income."

"Consider it done. Now money wise, Carlisle will be getting with you on that issue. The length of time for this arrangement would be at least a month in case it takes some time for the contract with them to be written up… maybe longer; however, I will make you aware of any changes, but for now, I would plan on one month. Living arrangements, well since you will be my 'wife', you will, of course, live with me in my house. However, there will be no sharing of bedrooms. My house is quite large, and I can assure you that we will probably never see each other while both home."

"Okay, well then all that is left are the minor details."

"And those would be what, Miss Swan?"

"Being seen out in public together and then there is the issue of how much physical contact we would have to have while we were in front of these people."

"Right. Well I would prefer for us not to go out in public anywhere unless it is absolutely necessary. I want to keep a lid on this. I don't need to have this blown up in the papers and us be on the front page of every Seattle newspaper. The matter of physical contact is nothing to be feared. It will only require maybe holding hands and hugs, and if necessary to make our marriage look authentic, then a peck on the lips, but that's as far as it goes."

"Alright then, I guess I will do it, but I want you to know one thing, Masen, I am not deceiving these people for your benefit. I am doing it as a means of survival for my dad and me."

"Understood. Let me arrange for Carlisle to write up an agreement between us once the amount of money has been agreed upon."

**EXOXOXB**

"Okay, Miss Swan, if you just sign on this line here and on this one here, we will be in good shape. Both your terms and Edward's have been agreed on and written in the contract. As you can see, Edward has already signed."

A man with golden blonde hair who they called Carlisle told me as he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled a pen out. He clicked the pen and handed it to me.

I brought the pen up to the line and was just about to sign when I suddenly jerked my hand back.

"Do you mind if I read over this one more time?"

He smiled at me gently and said, "No please go ahead."

I flipped all the pages back to the beginning and began to read the contract. It was a simple contract, in the terms that there were no words that I didn't understand and no hidden clauses, but what it stated was anything but uncomplicated.

_This contract written on this day 2009-11-16 states that under conformity from _

_Edward Anthony Masen and Isabella Marie Swan _

_The following stipulations will be abided by with confirmation of their signatures and will be a legitimate legal contract in the court of law._

_Isabella Marie Swan here by agrees to comply with Edward Anthony Masen in becoming his pretend 'Wife' for one month or longer, if compulsory. Though this is not a legal matrimony, it will still consist of living together and physical interactions when necessary. Sex is not required or desired by either parties and will not be included in this written document._

_Mr. Masen has agreed to the following:_

_Paying for the services of a Miss Angela Weber to take care of Charlie Swan _

_(Bella's father) for one month or longer depending upon how long this matrimony last between the two of them. _

_That he will not force himself on Bella and promises to have the highest respect for her. _

_Last but not least that, once this contract has been lived up to and both he and Bella follow through with all the terms, that Bella will walk away with eight hundred thousand dollars and a secured job at one of Mr. Masen's companies._

_Bella has agreed to the following:_

_To keep this confidential and is only allowed to enlighten _

_her father and Angela about this agreement. _

_Has agreed that once this is finished, both she and Edward will go their separate ways and will leave all ties behind them._

_If both parties fail to comply with all the written terms in this legal document then action will be taken._

See simple enough, Right?

I brought the pen to the line once more and signed my name.

I just kept saying to myself that I did this for my dad; however, I couldn't help but wonder what he was going to say about the whole situation.

**A/N: Okay so tell me what you think. Like it? Hate it? Should I still continue or scrap it? Also I need help finding a story. I can't remember the title, but I do remember a little bit of what happened in the first chapter. You see my friend Winters wants to read it, and I still can't find it. **

**It's about Edward and Bella who are brother and sister, and all I remember is that he pulls her out of a guy's car in the beginning and takes her home. Later when he goes up to her room to talk to her about it some other stuff happens and they end up turning into something more. **

**That's all that I can remember about it. So if anyone thinks they know what story it is please contact me through my PM or though a review. It would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! **

**Okay, so that's all for now. Thank you so much for reading and please review. I would love to hear your thoughts and maybe some of your ideas. I do take the time to write everyone back to thank them for taking the time to post a review. Till next time every one have a safe and fun summer! **


	3. Fake Smiles & All Show

**A/N: Hello everyone! Thank you guys so much for all your reviews, favorites, and alerts. I greatly appreciate it.**

**Also just a few things to mention.**

**I realize that I am making lots of mistakes with my words in the story. I do apologize for that. I guess since I know what it's supposed to say when I proof read I never catch the flaws.**

**UPDATE: 1/02/13**

**Many thanks to my new beta **_**Twilightmom505**_**! Without her the chapters would have tons of mistakes and be very difficult to read. So thank you once again for all your time and hard work helping correct these chapters!**

**Hope everyone had a great New Years!**

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own Twilight or any of its characters.**

**Chapter 3**

**Fake Smiles & All Show**

**EPOV**

Once the contract was signed, I set up a car to follow Miss Swan home and to gather some clothes and other necessities she would need while living with me.

The car was going to return with Miss Swan the next morning.

I was going to go back with her to help, but she said it would be better if I wasn't their when she told Charlie.

Apparently, even though he is bedridden, he can still scare the shit out of people.

Who was I to argue with her?

After all, she knew what he was capable of; whereas, I didn't.

Besides, I had plenty of work to do around here anyway.

I sat down at my desk and began going over the day's events in my head.

When I got up this morning, I didn't expecting any of this to happen.

Pretending to be married?

What did Jasper get me into?

What's worse is that during the month of the contract, I knew that I was going to have to be abstinent.

Not just no sex with Bella, but no sex period. I couldn't take a chance in getting caught with another girl and the sale not go through.

As long as I had that stupid ring on my finger, I was going to have blue balls.

Rings!

Shit!

I quickly got out of my chair, threw my jacket over my arm, and walked out of the office.

I needed to get to the jewelry store before they closed.

"Calling it a day, Mr. Masen?"

"Yes, I am. I sent some emails to you earlier today with directions on some things that need to be faxed and printed along with various other tasks to be completed. I expect to come in and find them waiting for me on my desk in the morning."

"Yes sir, I will have them ready and waiting for you. Good night." She beamed up at me and flashed a smile.

Suck up!

I rode the elevator all the way down to the parking garage and quickly hopped in my car.

I drove to the jewelry store with the radio on, but the volume turned down. Damn headache!

When I arrived there, I walked in and was greeted by Mr. Banner, the owner. "How is my favorite customer?"

Of course I was his favorite customer. This is where I shopped for my watches. I even shopped here for Esme, Carlisle's wife. She's like a mother to me, so every year for Christmas, I got her jewelry. It was nothing for me to come in and drop $50,000 in less than an hour.

"I bet you say that to everyone."

"Yes, but I mean it when I say it to you."

We both laughed.

"What can I do for you today, Mr. Masen?"

"Well, I want to keep this under wraps, but I need to buy a wedding ring."

Mr. Banner's face lit up, and he clapped his hands together.

"Congratulations, Mr. Masen. Come, I will show you where they are. We have quite a selection that I think you will be very pleased."

I put on the show that I needed to by plastering a fake smile on my face. Pretending to be happy is something I never thought I would have to do.

I followed him past all the watches and necklaces until we came to a glass case with hundreds of rings in it, varying in colors and sizes.

"Now, did you have a certain style in mind? Or do you just want to look until you find one that you like?"

Style?

What was Bella's style?

When she came in my office, she was dressed in blue jeans and an old t-shirt.

She dressed simple and cheap!

But I, Edward Masen, never do anything simple or cheap!

"I will look until I find something I like."

"Very well."

Mr. Banner then pulled out ring after ring until I found one that fit what I had pictured in my mind.

There were two rings to the set.

The first ring had a large circular diamond in the center and a smaller one on each side with raised edges. The second was a band and had three small diamonds on it, and it also had raised edges. Both of them were silver.

"I like this one."

"Nice choice, Mr. Masen. What size do you need it in?"

"Size?"

"Yes, the girl's ring size. What is it?"

"Uh, I don't know. She is really tiny, and her hands are way smaller than mine."

I was babbling like a moron until finally, Mr. Banner took pity on me and intervened.

"Ok," he said while he chuckled. "How about we try this size? This is the size that most petite women wear, and if it doesn't fit her, bring it back along with the girl, and we will find the correct size, Ok?"

"Sounds good to me," I said.

Then I pick out a sleek silver band for myself and paid for it all.

I know it was unreasonable to spend a lot of money on wedding bands for a phony marriage, but I needed it to look authentic, and if I were really married to Bella, then she would not have gotten a cheap ring.

Everyone knows my style and taste. If Edward Masen didn't have the best for himself, then that's when people would question that something was up.

I then drive home and ask Mrs. Cope to get Bella's room ready since she would be arriving tomorrow.

With some food in my stomach and a nice hot shower, I was ready for bed.

**BPOV**

I told Edward there was no reason for him to send another car. I could just drive my truck back to Seattle, but he wouldn't take no for an answer.

Oh well, it was his gas money not mine. Not that it was anything to him. A tank of gas was pocket change to someone who had a bank account the size of his.

He asked if I wanted him to come with me and help, but I told him no. I still had to tell Charlie, and to be honest, if Edward was with me, I am pretty sure Charlie would have found a way to kill him.

Bedridden or not.

The drive home went by much faster than the drive up to Seattle, but I think a lot of that was because I was scared as hell to tell Charlie what I had done.

I knew he was going to be livid with me.

However, nothing could have prepared me for Charlie's reaction.

He was furious and was yelling at the top of his lungs. I feared for his health.

"Bella, you go back up there this instant and tell him no."

"Dad, I can't. I already signed the contract. I can't break it."

He was lying down in the hospital bed that we had purchased when he became ill; however, with every sentence he shouted, he was becoming restless.

"What the hell possessed you to do something as brainless as this?"

I then look over at Angela, who was sitting on the couch. She wasn't saying anything. She was only listening. I realized that she had not told Charlie about the warehouse shutting down.

"Dad, I have to. It is the only way we will be able to pay bills."

"Bella, honey, I hate that you are constantly worrying about bills. You are going to go grey prematurely. The job you have would suffice. I don't know why the hell you thought you had to sell yourself."

"Dad, it's not like I am a freaking prostitute standing on a dark corner. In the contract, there is a no sex policy."

"A no sex policy? Woo, I am comforted," he said sarcastically

I threw my hands up in the air. This was getting me nowhere.

"Uh, Dad, Trust me, Okay? I would not have to do this if I thought there was any other way. Besides, the job at the warehouse is no more. They are shutting it down."

"What?" His face now had a look of concern on it. "Is that why you stormed out of the house like a mad women the other day and left me here with Angela?"

"Yes."

"Only to come back and announce that you are going to live with a guy you hardly know, for a month and pretend to be married to him."

"That's correct."

"Bella, I didn't think I would ever have to say this about my own daughter, but you are crazy and need to be locked up in a mental institution. Angela, bring me the phone and the phone book. I will make the call."

I looked over at Angela, who all of a sudden, became very interested in the movie that was playing on the television.

"Dad, there is no use in arguing about it anymore. What's done is done."

"You're right. I just don't know why you would make such an unwise decision like this. In the future, please start using your whole brain and not just one side."

"I don't have time for this, Dad; I have to go and pack. Angela will be staying with you while I am gone. I expect for you to be on your best behavior. Understand?"

"What am I six?"

Sighing, I went up to my room and grabbed the only two suitcases I owned and packed a month's worth of clothes, or rather everything I had. I didn't have a month's worth of a wardrobe. I then went in the bathroom and got my razors, shampoo, conditioner, shaving cream, and soap. My toothbrush and toothpaste would stay out till morning, and then once I brushed my teeth, they would join the rest of it.

This took about an hour or so, and by the time I walked back downstairs, Charlie had cooled off enough to where I could actually talk to him.

"Dad, I know you're angry with me."

He looked up from the T.V. and grabbed the remote. He then pushed the mute button and motioned with his hand for me to sit on the sofa beside his bed. We keep his bed in the living room. It was easier that way.

"Bells, I think I am more upset with myself than you. If I could work, then you wouldn't have to do this. I hate how you had to grow up so fast. I feel like you have missed out on being a young adult because you are always taking care of me."

"Dad, don't do this to yourself. I don't mind taking care of you. And as far as being a young adult, I am. I am just one of the responsible ones."

He smiled at me and ruffled my hair. "So this contract, do you have it with you?"

"I figured you were going to ask that, so yes, I did bring home a copy of it." I pushed myself up from the sofa and went to retrieve it for him.

I decided it was best not to tell my dad that this was the better choice out of the two that I was given. I didn't want him to know that Edward had practically forced me into doing this.

We needed the money, and Charlie killing Edward would not only make a mess, but it would also cause us to have no source of income.

I quickly shook my head to get that scenario out of it.

When I got back to the living room, I handed it to him. Before he could start reading, I announced that I was going to bed. With a quick goodnight, I left him in the living room to read in the dull light.

**EPOV**

I woke up this morning and showered. Today was the day that Bella would be arriving at my house. Eric left a message with Mrs. Cope announcing that Bella and he were on their way here and would be arriving with in the next hour or so, which was a good sign.

I was half expecting to get a call last night with her asking to get out of the contract due to Charlie, but it never came.

The thought of this cheered me up. I couldn't believe that I was actually going to pull this off.

Instead of going into the office early this morning, I decided to wait until Bella got here and was settled.

So needless to say, I had some time to spare. I decided to go and get some breakfast and just lounge around in the living room until she arrived.

**BPOV**

When I woke up the next morning, it was around seven. I walked down to the living room to see that Charlie was already awake.

"So today is the day, huh?" he said while watching TV.

"Yep, I guess it is. I will call you and check in everyday and come visit every chance I get."

"Don't be silly. I am a grown man. I can take care of myself, and what I can't do, Angela will be here to help me with."

"Well still, I am going to call and check in to make sure everything is alright."

"Come on, Bells, just admit it; you're going to miss your old man."

I laughed and went to hug him. I kissed him on the cheek and went to say goodbye to Angela.

The car Edward had sent for me was already waiting in my driveway, and the driver had already load my stuff.

The drive to Edward's house was both short and long at the same time, if that's at all possible.

After we made it into Seattle, I noticed that we passed by Edward's office.

"So how much farther do we have to go?" I asked the driver, impatience getting the best of me.

"We have a little ways to go. Mr. Masen doesn't live in town. He values his privacy, always has. When he was younger he bought this house on the outside of town and has been living here ever since," the driver said as he glanced back at me through the rear view mirror.

I smiled back at him. Anxious to get away from his stare, I turned my head to the window to focus on the scenery. When we arrived on the outskirts of Seattle, we turned off onto a solitary road. For what seemed like miles, nothing was around, just the forest on either side of us. And then suddenly out of nowhere, the forest started to thin and was replaced with beautiful bushes that had stunning pink and white flowers on them. I rolled down the window to get a better look. The cool November air bit at my cheeks. The flowers fragrance was unbearably intoxicating and filled the car. I inhaled deeply, letting the sweet aroma feel my body, shutting my eyes to make the peaceful moment last longer.

I quickly opened my eyes when I heard a throat clear.

"We are here, Miss Swan."

I looked out the window to see a house that was breathtaking. I couldn't believe that for one month I would be staying here. I suddenly felt like royalty.

The house was made out of ashen and grey stones. There were lush green bushes in front, and a white balcony ran along the front of the house. On one side of the house there was a huge two story window. The stone stairs were wide, and went with the house perfectly. It was three stories, and with the sun shining behind it, it took my breath away.

The driver came around the car and opened the door for me. He already had my suitcases in his hand.

He motioned with a quick nod of his head to for me to follow him.

We walked up the stone stairs to the doorway; he opened it, and then stepped aside for me to enter first.

If I thought the outside was pretty, the inside was flamboyant.

In front of the grand entry way there was the huge formal living room that had three arched openings. There was a chandelier hanging in the entry way and two double grand staircases. The railings that went up the stairs were made out of black iron and had beautiful swirl designs molded with the bars. At the top of the stairs, there was a balcony that opened up to both the entry way and the living room. Off of both sides of the balcony, there were, what I assumed were hallways that lead to the bedrooms. The walls were a clean and crisp creamy white color. The floor was a light tan color, and in the center of it, there was a circular pattern, which had dark tiles to make it stand out.

As I admired the beauty of the house, Edward walked up to me.

"Hi."

"Hello."

"I take it Charlie took it better than you thought?"

"Uh, it took some time for him to calm down, but once he did, he realized that what's done is done."

He nodded his head.

"Okay, well, Mrs. Cope is going to show you to your room while I head down to the office."

"Okay."

He turned to leave but stopped in his tracks and turned back.

"Eric, please take Bella's luggage up to her room."

"Yes, Sir."

Once Edward and I were alone, he looked all nervous.

"Uh, to make this marriage look as real as possible, I went and got us some wedding rings." He then proceeded to pull a black velvet box out of his pants pocket and opened it up to reveal a diamond ring set.

"Now, if these don't fit we can go back to the jewelry store and exchange them for a set that does." He then gently took my left hand from where it was resting by my side and put the wedding band on my ring finger, followed by the engagement ring. The moment would have brought tears to my eyes at how beautiful the rings were if I didn't know that they were to convince people of our 'fake marriage'.

"They're gorgeous." I held my hand out in front of me and examined how they look.

"I am glad you like them, because they will be yours for the next month, maybe longer."

I quickly looked up at him. He quickly started back peddling out of his words.

"Depending on how long it takes for us to work an agreement up with Aro, that is."

"Yes, of course."

I don't know why, but if felt as though his words were really saying something more, but it just could be wishful thinking.

Freeze!

Wishful thinking? Bella? What the fuck?

You detest this man, remember?

Not knowing what else to say, I just stood there as he did until he finally he pulled his keys out of his pocket and headed out.

**EPOV**

What the hell?

That was close.

Good thing I quickly straightened it out.

I arrived at my office, not even knowing how I got there in one piece. I didn't even remember looking at the road once.

Ugh!

There is too much shit bouncing around in my head. I thought as I stepped into the elevator and punched my floor number.

When the shiny silver doors slid open, I could already see Lauren sitting at her desk.

"Good day, Mr. Masen. I have the paperwork that you asked for last night ready and waiting on your desk. Also, Mr. Whitlock is already in your office."

"Okay, thanks."

I passed by her desk and opened my door. "Jazz, what can I do for you?"

Jasper looked up from the papers in his hand. "Well, Edward, it seems that Aro is already in flight to Seattle. He has decided to come down so we can begin the transfer process."

"Well that's good news my, friend," I said as I removed my jacket, hung it up, and walked over to my desk.

Once I was seated, Jasper continued.

"There's more."

"Okay, so out with it then."

"Well, it seems that he would like to stay in your house for the time that he is down here."

"My house, why?"

"Something about he wants to get to know your wife. By the way, man, I have to tell you, I never thought I would live to see the day that a wedding ring would be on your hand."

Yeah. Me neither I thought to myself.

Jasper smirked at me as I turned the ring around and around on my finger.

"Well then, Jasper, I guess I have no other choice. If I want this to go through then Bella is going to have to meet Aro."

"Well, look on the bright side. At least this will all be over quickly."

"True that, but I think I am going to need some help from your wife, Jasper."

"Alice? Why do you need her help?"

"Well it's not so much me; it's Bella. She is going to need an updated wardrobe, and I know Alice will have no objections to shopping. I don't want Bella to meet Aro in her old clothes."

"Alright, Man, I will call Alice."

"Good, and here," I pulled my wallet out and gave Jasper my gold card.

"Tell Alice to use this and when they are finished shopping just to give it to Bella."

"Sure, Man, no problem."

Jasper left, and I called the airport to see what time Aro's plane was arriving. I arranged for a car to be ready to take me there so I could personally greet him when he arrived.

This is going to be interesting.

**A/N: Okay that's all for this chapter. Be sure to check out the pictures on my profile of the rings and Edward's house. Thank you for reading and please, please, please review.**


	4. Meet And Greet

**A/N: **

**Hello to everyone! Long time no see eh? Sorry about that I am behind on all my stories. I have been trying to make blogs and banners for all of them; however, banners are really hard to do… so I heard and so I am kind of scared to even try.**

**If anyone knows how to make them and could give me any tips, it would be greatly appreciated along with any help/information you can give me about make a blog on blogspot. Okay on with the story.**

**UPDATE 1/10/13**

**Everyone give a shout out to my new beta **_**Twilightmom505! **_**She has made the story a lot nicer to read since she has fixed all the flaws! Very thankful to have her help!**

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own Twilight or any of its characters.**

**Chapter 4**

**Meet and Greet**

**BPOV**

Once Edward walked out, I just stood there in the foyer looking at the ring: admiring it. I knew that something this expensive would probably never traverse my path and sit on my ring finger again.

I was interrupted by a short-plump lady who had silver hair, laugh lines, and wrinkled skin but looked to be sweet and caring.

"Hello, Miss Swan, I'm Mrs. Cope, Edward's housekeeper. Well, I guess it's Mrs. Masen now, huh? My apologies." She held her puffy hand out for me to shake.

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Cope." I gripped her hand lightly and then let it go.

"Well, dear, follow me. I will show you to your room, so you can take the time you need to get settled in, and if you would like, I can help you unpack."

"That's very nice of you, Mrs. Cope, but I only have two suitcases with me."

I followed her up the stairs that were on the right side of the entry way.

"Nonsense, darling. I insist, besides it would give me something to do for an hour or so. There are only so many times you can clean a house that is hardly ever lived in."

I could see that she was right. Just what I had seen of the house so far was all pristine.

Once we reached the second floor, we walked down the hallway and came to a stop at a door.

"Okay, dear, this is your room," she said as she opened the door to reveal my new sleeping quarters for the next month, maybe longer.

My mouth dropped open. I couldn't believe my eyes. The room was gorgeous. No doubt it was fit for a queen.

It had a sparkling crystal chandelier in the center of the ceiling. The walls were covered in this amazingly beautiful wallpaper that had elegant patterns printed on it in a tan and cream color. The two grand windows were draped in dark russet colored fabric that had little tassels sewn in the ends. The bed that was sitting up against the far wall was queen sized and surrounded with a canopy that was made of what looked to be silk. There were plush throw pillows on the bed, and the comforter looked amazingly soft.

The side table that accented the bed held a lamp and a vase of fresh flowers. In front of the bed in the middle of the room, there was a sitting area that housed two light pink chairs, one ivory colored chair, and a long plush couch with oversized pillows. There was a glassed covered coffee table in the middle that held a stack of books and another vase that had white flowers overflowing from it. There was a light mahogany desk that set behind the couch. The room was breathtaking.

I turned to look at Mrs. Cope. "Are you sure this is my room?"

Mrs. Cope just let out a soft giggle and said, "Yes, Mrs. Masen, I promise. This is where all of Edward's guests stay. Not that he has many, but nonetheless, I assure you that you are indeed in the correct room"

"Wow, this must have cost a fortune to have an interior designer come in and decorate this room. I feel like I should be in a castle or something."

"Actually, Carlisle's wife Esme volunteered to fix it up for him. She loves doing this kind of stuff. Edward gave her his credit card and free reign of the project, and this is what we got. She is a very talented woman. In fact she designed the entire house's interior. All the bedrooms have a different theme and design. This is the one that Edward asked me to prepare for you," she said as she walked over and picked up a suitcase off the carpeted floor where the driver, Eric, sat them.

She brought it over to the couch and opened it up. I followed her example with the other one, and we began to unpack. Mostly we worked in silence. Every now and again, I would hear Mrs. Cope hum, and when she caught herself, she would apologize and say that she was no Whitney Houston.

After about an hour, we had all my clothes unpacked and stored in the huge walk-in closet.

That was just as amazing as the bedroom itself.

It had ivory colored carpet and built-ins that were made out of a medium glossy brown colored wood that covered every wall. The built-ins had nine different sections to hang clothes up; one of them being taller than the others to hang dresses or suits. There were tons of drawers and even a place to sit your shoes and purses. There was a rug in the middle of the floor along with a small chest of drawers and a cushioned bench to sit on.

The sad part of it was that all of my clothes could fit in one hanging section and only filled up three drawers.

Mrs. Cope had just finished storing my empty luggage in the closet so she came back out to help with all my toiletries that had been set aside while unpacking my attire.

"Well, this is it. See? That didn't take long at all."

She opened a door that lead to the attached bathroom.

"Oh my gosh!"

Is this place ever going to stop making my mouth drop open in surprise at how exquisite everything looks?

The tile on the floor was white, with little auburn colored lines running randomly through it. The walls were a deep crimson color, and there were his and her toilets. The counter top with the double sinks was a scarlet color that matched the walls perfectly. A large mirror towered over the sink, and I could see the amazement on my face through my reflection. There were two off-white pillars that stood tall in front of the burgundy colored Jacuzzi tub, and a picture that accented the wall over the tub had mountains and a large body of water in front of it. The lights were soft and set the atmosphere to be relaxing and romantic.

I could easily see myself in the huge tub full of steaming hot water and bubbles with candles lit and its lights flickering.

I came out of my trance when I heard some shuffling around me. I looked up to see Mrs. Cope putting all my things in drawers and on the side of the tub.

"Okay, dear, the towels are in this cabinet here, and if during your stay you need any more toiletries, all you have to do is ask."

With that said, we both walked out of the bathroom.

"Well, I will give you some time to yourself to relax. If you need me, I will be downstairs."

I really didn't want to stay in my room by myself, so I spoke up before she left, "Um, actually if it's alright with you, I would like to walk around the house and get to know my surroundings a little better."

"Of course, dear."

We both walked out of the room and back down the stairs until we were standing in the foyer once again.

"Would you like for me to give you a tour?"

"That would be great."

"Ok, de-"

But she didn't get to finish because the phone started ringing.

"Hold that thought. I will be right back," she said as she turned and quickly exited the foyer.

Within moments, she was back with a cordless phone in her hands.

"It's for you, dear." she said as she held the phone out for me to take. I had a puzzled look on my face. Who would be calling me here? Charlie and Angela have my cell number, so if they needed to contact me, they would have tried that first.

Mrs. Cope, sensing my bafflement, kindly answered my unspoken question.

"It's Mr. Masen."

"Oh."

She preceded to hand me the phone and then left to give me privacy on the call.

"Hello?"

"Bella?"

"Yes?"

"How are you getting settled in?"

"Fine, thank you. The guest room and bath are amazingly beautiful."

"Well, thank you, I'm glad you like it. I want you to be comfortable as I think it might help you to transition into this charade better." There was a slight pause on his end of the line before he started talking again, and this time it was all business. "So, the reason I'm calling is because I have some news that I need to discuss with you."

"Okay."

"It seems that Aro has decided to fly in early to start the negotiations of handing over his company to us. With that being said, he has asked to stay as a guest in the house."

I was silent waiting for him to continue.

"So, I am afraid that things may get a little crazy when he gets there. We are really going to have to appear comfortable with each other. Also I am having Alice, Jasper's wife, come over with my credit card and take you shopping for some new clothes."

"Edward, you don't have to do that. I have clothes here with me."

"I insist. Besides we are going to be meeting him over dinner tonight. It's going to be at the house, but nonetheless, it's still an important meeting."

"I understand."

"Okay well, I have already talked to Mrs. Cope about cooking and preparing everything. Alice should be there soon. I will be home as soon as I pick up Aro from the airport."

"See you then."

"Bye, Bella."

"Bye, Edward."

As soon as I pushed the end button on the phone to hang up, there was the ringing of the doorbell.

Mrs. Cope came out from whatever room she was in and walked to the door. When she opened it there was a short, petite, spiky black-haired girl standing there with a huge smile on her face. She was pretty and looked like a black headed Tinkerbelle.

"Mrs. Cope, how have you been?" the pixie asked as she hugged her.

"Pretty good, Alice. It's nice to see you again. How is Jasper?"

"Oh, you know, he and Edward are busy, busy."

She released Mrs. Cope and looked over my way.

"I see that Mr. Masen has called on your expert fashion sense."

Alice giggled and shook her head yes. Her smile only got bigger.

"You must be Bella!" she said as she was walking up to me.

"Yes, I am," I said and extended my hand out to her.

She glanced at it and then pulled me into a bone crushing hug, taking me by surprise with both her forwardness and her strength. For someone so tiny, she sure was strong.

When she let me go, she linked our two hands together and started walking us to the front door.

"Well, I hate to leave so soon, Mrs. Cope, but I only have so much time before I have to return Bella, so we need to get started right away."

"It's fine, dear. I have to start prepping the food for tonight's dinner anyway."

On our way past her, I quickly handed the phone back and gave her a pleading, scared look.

She just smiled and told us to have fun while shutting the door behind us.

Alice dragged me to a yellow sports car, and once we were both in, she started the engine and sped out of Edward's driveway.

"So, Bella, I figured since its one o'clock now that we have three and a half hours to shop, at four-thirty we will leave and should be back home around five, depending on traffic. Edward informed me that Aro's plane is supposed to land at six-fifteen, but you can never count on the planes landing when they say they will. They are always early or late, never on time. But that's beside the point. Anyway, at five o'clock I figured you could get in the shower, and when you get out, I will help apply your make-up and fix your hair. Once that's done, I will pick out an outfit for you to wear and then my work will be done."

The whole time she talked, she never took a breath and only glanced at the road a total of two times. However, her speed kept increasing.

I, on the other hand, had strapped my seatbelt as tight as it would go and was hanging onto 'oh shit handle'. I think this was my first car ride where I actually had sweat pouring down my body. I dreaded the ride back with her.

"I am so glad Edward asked me to do this. He gave me his credit card, which has no limit. This is going to be so much fun Bella, and we are going to be such great friends."

I just smiled nervously and looked at the road thinking that someone needed to be paying attention.

When we arrived into the heart of Seattle, we went to all kinds of different stores. Alice dragged me along behind her, and when our hands would get to full, we would make a stop at her car and drop our shopping bags off, only to have to return to drop off more in a matter of minutes.

I didn't do anything expect go in the dressing room and wait for Alice to toss me clothes over the top of the door. She wouldn't let me pick anything out after the first store.

She asked me what I liked to wear, and when I informed her of my jeans, sweats and t-shirts, I thought she was going to have a coronary right there on the sales floor.

After we had gone to lord only knows how many stores, it was finally four-thirty, and I couldn't have been happier.

We made our way back to the car and drove back to Edward's house. The car ride was just as scary as the first go round.

Once in the driveway, we gathered all of the bags we could get out of the car on the first pass and opened the door to the house, only to be hit by the amazing aroma of fresh baked garlic bread and lasagna.

"Looks like Mrs. Cope has been busy," Alice said as she passed by me.

"Come on, Bella, we don't have much time." She stepped aside for me to lead the way up to my room.

"Okay, Bella, you go get cleaned up, and I will pick out your outfit. Also I'm going to see if I can get Eric to get the rest of the bags out of the car, so I can hang up all your new clothes." When she said this she was bouncing up and down in one place. I just laughed. How anybody can be excited about putting clothes up is beyond me.

I walked in the bathroom and began going through my routine of bathing. Once finished, I dressed in my newly purchased undergarments. Alice told me to wear a button up shirt, that way when she is done fixing my hair, it will be easy to take off, and my hair will still be perfectly styled, her words, not mine.

"What time is it?" I asked as I sat down in one of the chairs in the room. Alice didn't want to work on me in the bathroom. She said that she wants me to see the finished product all at once, no mirrors before.

"It's five-thirty, but don't worry, I will have your hair fixed, make-up on and you dressed before Edward and Aro arrive. Let's get started, shall we?"

During the process of her beautifying me, I realize that I am really starting to like Alice. She seems like a genuine down to earth person and she is just crazy about her husband Jasper.

In the span of twenty-five minutes, she managed to roll the ends of my hair in different size curlers and did my make-up for me.

When the curlers were removed and the finishing touches of my make-up done, she pointed to the bed to where she laid out a white pants suit. I look at her with a puzzled look.

"Alice, out of all the clothes we bought today, that's what I am wearing tonight?"

"Trust me on this, Bella, you want to look comfortable and casual but also like you could expect company at any time. This will work perfect for tonight."

"Okay." I shrugged my shoulders and went to get dressed. When I came out, she had a pair of heels for me to slip on to complete the outfit.

"As far as accessories go, all you need tonight is a necklace and your wedding band. You don't want to look to gaudy by overloading the jewelry. Okay, come on, are you ready to look at yourself in the mirror?"

"Yep, let's see how good you polished me up." I went to the mirror and spun around once. Alice did an amazing job. She didn't overload the make-up which allowed me to still look natural, and my hair, well I never knew that it could look like this.

"Thanks, Alice. I couldn't have done this without you."

"Oh, no problem. I love playing dress up, so if you ever need help in the future, feel free to call me. Here is my number." She jotted down her cell number on a piece of paper and placed it in one of the bedside table drawers.

"Okay, chick, I am out. I received a text from Jasper while you were dressing saying that Edward left for the airport not long ago, so I am sure he will be here soon."

"Okay, Alice, see you soon and again, thanks."

Alice came up and hugged me tightly. "No problem, Bella, it was nice to meet you, and I am glad that I made a new friend. Next time we get together, we need to invite my friend Rosalie. I think ya'll will get along great."

"Okay, I look forward to it."

"Okay, bye, girl."

"Bye."

And with that, she walked out of my room.

I took a few moments to get my bearings together.

KNOCK! KNOCK!

"Come in."

"Bella?"

I turned around to see Mrs. Cope standing in the doorway. "Yes, Mrs. Cope?"

"Mr. Masen and his guest have arrived. They are downstairs waiting for you in the foyer."

"Okay, thank you. I guess I will walk down after I check my hair and make-up one last time."

"Okay, dear, I will let them know, and by the way, you look lovely."

I blushed ten shades of red as Mrs. Cope left my room.

Once I made sure nothing needed touching up, I emerged from my bedroom, walked down the hallway, and started to descend the stairs.

**A/N: **

**So chapter four is down. How did ya'll like it? Next is going to be some of both Edward and Bella's POV. **

**I have pictures on my profile of Bella's bed/bathroom and her outfit. So be sure to go check it out **

**Thank you for reading and please review.**


	5. Uncomfortable Dinner

**A/N: **

**Hello to all! Long time no see. Sorry about that. I just needed a break. I want to thank ya'll so much for reading, reviewing, putting me in your favorites. Also for all the alerts that this story has received. **

**UPDATE: 1/23/13**

**Hey everyone! Shout out to my Beta **_**Twilightmom505! **_**She makes this easy for ya'll to read and corrects all my mistakes! She is amazing like that!**

**DISCLAIMER: **

**I do not own Twilight or any of it's characters. Just the plot line to this story.**

**Chapter 5**

**Uncomfortable Dinner**

**EPOV**

I arranged for a car to pick me up from the office at 5:30 p.m., so I could arrive at the airport early. Aro's plane wasn't supposed to land till 6:15 p.m., but everybody knows how unreliable their parting and landing times are. So it was better to be safe than sorry.

On the way to the airport as I was looking out the window, I noticed it started to sprinkle and then it was like the bottom had fallen out. Thunder and lightening started to pop in the distance, and the roads became more dangerous to be on.

I just hope all goes well with Aro's flight.

I walked into the airport, happy to get out of the rain, and closed my umbrella. As I stood at the terminal that Aro would be coming through, I started to wonder if Bella and I could really pull this off. The driver came along and held up a white sign that had Aro's name on it so that we could easily be spotted. I had no clue what he looked like, and it was the same way with him. This would be our first time meeting in person.

At 6:08 p.m. the passengers from flight 1146 started to file out and head for the luggage claim. I never saw anybody that came even remotely close to look like how I had pictured Aro.

A man in a long dark grey trench coat came and stood in front of the driver and me.

The driver responded, "Aro Marcus?"

"Yes, I am Aro Marcus," he said, then turned his attention away from the driver, and his eyes bore into mine. "You must be Edward Masen."

He stuck his hand out for me to shake, and I accepted.

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Marcus."

He squeezed my hand a little tighter as if to size me up.

"Please, call me Aro. After all, I will be selling my company to you. One that I have spent most of my life building, I think it makes sense for us to be on first name basis."

"Of course, sir."

"So where is your wife? I was expecting to meet her." Aro looked around as if to make his point.

"I am sorry, Aro. Bella is back at the house waiting for us. I didn't want her to get out in the weather."

He nodded his head and made his way to the baggage claim. I breathed a sigh of relief to see that he believed me.

After the driver had Aro's luggage loaded in the trunk and we were situated in the car, we headed to my house.

The trip was spent mostly talking about Bella.

"So, tell me my boy. What does your Bella look like?" he asked as he lit up a cigar.

"Well, Aro, she is pretty. She has long mahogany hair and deep brown eyes you could get lost in."

"She sounds pretty all ready.

He let out a deep throaty chuckle and went back to puffing on his cigar. He continued to ask questions about Bella, and I answered them to the best of my ability. It's not easy to pretend you're in love when you're not.

When we finally arrived at the house, the driver pulled into the garage and started to unload Aro's suitcases.

I led Aro into the house and was greeted by Mrs. Cope. "Good evening, Mr. Masen."

"Good evening, Mrs. Cope. I would like to introduce you to Aro Marcus."

"Nice to meet you, sir."

Aro nodded his head in agreement with her.

"Mrs. Cope, is Bella in the living room?"

"No sir, Bella is still getting ready. Shall I let her know that you and Mr. Marcus have arrived?"

"Please. The sooner he meets Bella, the sooner we can sit down and eat. I am sure after Aro's flight that he is anxious to get some kind of nourishment."

As she walked off, Aro started talking, "It sure smells good in here."

"That it does. Mrs. Cope is a fantastic cook."

A few moments later Mrs. Cope came back down the stairs. "She will be down momentarily, sir. The dining table has been set and is ready when you are."

"Thank you, Mrs. Cope."

She took that as her cue to leave and headed back towards the kitchen.

When I looked over at Aro, I noticed his eyes were focused toward the stairs, and I turned to see what had him so captured. That was when I noticed Bella descending down gracefully as she took each step one by one.

She looked beautiful.

Alice had really done well.

She had put Bella in a white pant suit that showed her slender legs and her soft toned body off. The top she was wearing had long sleeve and three large buttons that connected each side of the shirt. It was V-necked and showed her creamy white skin. Alice had put her in a pair of heels that were closed toe and a bit of an off-white color.

Bella's long shiny brunette locks where smooth and straight until it reached the end of her hair which was loosely curled and down to the middle of her back.

I couldn't blame Aro for starring at her; she was a sight to see, but on the other hand, it pissed me off.

What was this feeling that was overloading my body?

Jealously?

Nah, that couldn't be it. I knew Bella wasn't mine. This was an agreement. I had nothing to be jealous of. As soon as this was over, we would be going our separate ways and never see each other again.

Did I want that?

Yes, I think I do. I know I do! Right?

What I must be feeling right now is lust after her body. I couldn't deny it. Bella was a beautiful woman.

After all, I am a man.

What man wouldn't want to tap someone as gorgeous as her?

That's what it was!

Knowing that I would be off limits to sex was just making me restless, especially when I had her around the house.

It was like putting a huge piece of chocolate cake in front of someone who is on a diet.

It looks like I will be taking some cold showers for a while.

Bella's and my eyes made contact as she walked down the stairs. Just as she got to the last step, her heel got caught, and she stumbled and started to fall forward. I quickly moved to catch her in my arms. Her face was buried in my chest, and I could feel her breathing heavy. Her hands were gripping my arms as I helped steady her. I looked down to see if she was alright and was met with big doe eyes and flushed checks. We must have stayed that way for some time because Aro cleared his throat.

I shook my head from side to side quickly to get me back to reality.

"Aro, I would like to introduce you to my wife Bella. Bella, this is Aro Marcus."

Bella let go of me and held her hand out. "It's nice to meet you, Mr. Marcus. Welcome to our home."

Aro took Bella's hand and placed a kiss on it.

"The pleasure is all mine, ma'am. Are you okay from your little stumble?"

Bella cheeks turned crimson as she spoke. "Yes, I am fine. Thank you for asking."

He let her hand go but never broke eye contact with her. Talk about some nerve.

I pulled Bella close to my side, and Aro looked up at me and cleared his throat then looked down at his shoes.

"Dinners ready." Mrs. Cope came in, and we all followed her to the dining room with me still hanging onto Bella.

**BPOV**

What's with Edward?

If looks could kill, I am pretty sure that Aro would be six feet under by now.

Edward never let go of me until we were in the dining room and he had to pull my chair out for me.

Even then he seemed tense.

I could tell that this was going to be an uncomfortable dinner; however, to keep me from being so nervous, I decided to distract myself by looking around the dining room.

The dining room was lovely. The walls were painted a warm creamy tan color, and the hardwood floors were a medium brown. In the center of the room was a large rug. The furniture was a dark oak color. The table was long and could seat ten people; there were hand craved patterns in the table's edge, and the chairs had a printed cushion on both the seat and back.

There was a curio cabinet that had four shiny glass windows showcasing beautiful crystal dishes under bright yellow lights. The bottom of the curio had three drawers and cabinets on either side of them. The last piece to the dining set was the buffet stand with a marble table top and glass doors that also sheltered crystal dishes. There was a mirror hanging above the buffet, and vases filled with fresh flowers that set on top along with two lamps, one on each end.

Two French doors let in natural light, or in this case being that it was so late in the day, it gave you a terrific view of the night sky. The chandelier, which sat above the middle of the table, was gorgeous and brightly shining. The goldish looking curtains seemed to be the finishing touch on the room. The room was spectacular.

Once everyone was seated, Mrs. Cope brought out a bottle of red wine and filled our glasses, then went back to the kitchen and came out with three bowls of soup along with three small plates of salad and sat them down in front of us.

As we started eating, the silence became uncomfortable until Aro finally laid his fork down and began a conversation.

"So, Bella, tell me a bit about yourself and Edward."

I looked up at him in a panic and slowly sat my fork down. What was I supposed to say?"

"Uhmm…okay."

Shit! What am I supposed to talk about? Edward and I never addressed this situation.

In a panic, I was thinking off the top of my head and decided to blend several movies that I had seen together and boom the way Edward and I met was born.

"Would you like to hear how Edward and I met?"

"Yes, I would."

Mrs. Cope came in to collect our empty plates and came back with the lasagna and bread sticks. She filled up our glasses again and was gone.

"Okay, well, Edward and I met at a little dinner in my hometown of Forks. He had taken up a temporary residence there while in the middle of negotiations with one of the larger companies Forks had to offer. Anyway, he came in one day with an employee of his to order lunch, and I just so happened to be his waitress. We flirted a little bit and from that day on, he would come back to the diner every day and eat. He would always request to get one of my booths, so I would wait on him. Then one day after a few weeks of coming in, he was by himself, and I just so happened to be on my lunch break. That's when he came and sat with me. He had a dozen long-stemmed red roses and a card attached to it asking me out on a date, and that's how everything got started."

I picked my glass of wine up and took a sip. Aro looked back and forth from me to Edward and finally smiled.

"So, then how long have you two been together for?" Aro asked as he was cutting a piece of his lasagna.

Unfortunately both Edward and I decided to answer at the same time, and it didn't match up.

"Two years." "Four years."

Aro looked a bit surprised and had a questioning look on his face. When I looked over at Edward, he had an 'oh shit' look on his face, and there was panic in his eyes.

I cleared my throat and quickly took over the conversation.

"I know it sounds confusing Aro, but it's really not. You see Edward said two years because that's how long we have been married. I said four because that's how long we been together. Edward and I dated two years before we were married."

"Oh, then it was my mistake. I should have been clearer on what I was asking," Aro said and then looked down as if he was embarrassed but still had a smile on his face.

"Well Edward it appears that you lied to me," Aro said while bringing his head back up to look at Edward straight on.

"I am sorry sir, but I don't know what you're talking about," Edward said as he loosened his tie.

I myself could feel my own panic bubble up inside me at the thought of us being found out.

"Well you told me your wife was pretty when in reality she is beautiful and has a lovely personality. You didn't do her justice, my boy."

Edward said I was pretty?

"Well, thank you, Aro," I said as I took a sip of my wine.

I looked over at Edward who was now looking at me with a big smile on his face.

I smiled back at him and enjoyed the rest of supper, which was surprisingly easy to do after all the confusion was out of the way.

Nothing more about me or Edward was brought up; instead he and Aro talked a little business while we enjoyed a dessert of chocolate swirl cheesecake.

After dinner everyone adjourned to the living room. The same color that was on the walls in the dining room also flowed throughout this room. There was a huge second floor balcony that over looked the living room, and a fire burned brightly in a white mantled fireplace. The three windows were rounded on top and also displayed the stars for us. It looked like the rain had finally stopped.

There were two loveseats that were overflowing with pillows, a chair and some kind of sofa that didn't have a back. A huge ottoman that could double as a seat sat in front of the oval coffee table. The green plants gave the room a homier feel.

Edward and I sat on the couch together while Aro sat in a chair which had a perfect view of the second floor balcony. After the conversation started to thin out, Aro asked if he could read one of the books that Edward had on the coffee table.

"Of course, Aro. Please, help yourself," Edward said as he gestured his hand toward the books.

Aro leaned out of his chair and picked up a few books, studying them momentarily, and then put them back. Finally after doing that several times, he picked one and leaned back in his chair.

When I could see that this was pretty much it for the night, I decided that it was time to go to bed. I didn't want to continue pretending to be happily married to Edward. All I wanted right now was to go to sleep in that nice huge comfy bed.

"Well, gentlemen, if you will excuse me, I think I am going to retire to bed. Aro, it was nice to meet you, and once again, welcome to our home."

I inwardly rolled my eyes. I felt retarded. I was beginning to feel as if I was a Stepford Wife.

I looked over at Edward who was already standing up and offering me a hand.

"Yes, Aro, I hope that you will find your room to be comfortable. I will have Mrs. Cope show you where it's at when you are ready. I think that I am going to retire as well, but please feel free to stay up as long as you desire."

"Well, thank you, Edward. Bella, it was very nice meeting you."

Edward and I said goodnight as we both walked out of the living room and into the foyer to ascend the stairs. Once at the top, I looked over the balcony to see Aro look up and smile. I smiled back and then made my way toward the left of the balcony to my room.

I couldn't wait to get to my room and take these damn heels off my feet and change into some comfortable night clothes. My toes were going numb because of the shoes, and I could swear to you that they were turning blue from the lack of circulation.

However, before I was able to make it to my room, I was grabbed by my waist from behind and thrown into a dark room with someone's hand covering my mouth.

I tried to move but was pinned down. Finally I did the only thing I could, and I bit the hand that lay on top of my mouth.

"Ouch! Fuck! Bella, calm down." A irritated voice said through gritted teeth

I quickly unclenched my teeth from the hand.

"Edward?"

**A/N: **

**Pictures of Bella's hairstyle/outfit along with pictures of the dining/living room are all on my profile.**

**Thanks for reading and please review. **


	6. Pandora's Box

**A/N:**

**Hello to all my readers!**

**I missed ya'll terribly!**

**Wow! It's good to be back. I had taken a long vacation from writing, but now I'm back with some great new ideas. I hope ya'll are still tagging along with me. I know I left ya'll high and dry for a while… Sorry for that.**

**Anyway, thank you so much for all the comments and favorites. I really appreciate it! Now, without further adieu, your chapter.**

**See you at the bottom!**

**UPDATED 4/28/13**

**Many thanks to my beta, **_**Twilightmom505**_**! Without her the chapters would have tons of mistakes and be very difficult to read. So thank you once again for all your time and hard work helping correct these chapters!**

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I do not own Twilight or any of its characters, only the plot line to this story.**

**Chapter 6**

**Pandora's Box **

**EPOV**

"Edward, what the hell do you think you're doing? Get your damn hands off me! You're in violation of our contract."

I flicked on a light switch and covered her mouth with my hand again. That was when she tried to take a swing at me. This bitch just wouldn't stop to listen, and I was starting to get annoyed. I quickly let her go and backed away from her.

"Don't flatter yourself, Bella. I was just trying to keep you from blowing our cover. If Aro would have seen us go into separate rooms, then he would know something is up." I said while pulling my tie off and throwing it on the chair.

Bella shifted all her weight to one leg and crossed her arms.

"Well, then what the hell are we supposed to do? I'm not going to stay in here all night, Edward!"

"I know calm down. Damn are you always this bitchy?"

She gave me a go to hell look, which I took to be a yes.

I sighed and began to speak. "Look, you just have to stay in here till Aro decides to go to bed. Once he does, you can go back to your room, and Aro will never know because by the time you wake up in the morning, we will have already left for the office."

"And so we just keep doing this every night? I mean really, Edward, come on!" she said as she crossed her arms and shifted her weight to her right leg.

I pinched the bridge of my nose. Her voice was starting to sound nasal like to me. "Look, Bella, do you think I'm happy about the situation right now? No! I just wanted to come in my room take a shower and go to bed, but that has been delayed. Whether you like it or not, we both are going to have to endure this."

"Really? Well, you're not the one who has been wearing high heels and an uncomfortable outfit for the past few hours."

"Well, then take your shoes off. Besides, it shouldn't be long before he turns in. You will be out of here in no time and be free to go stark ass naked in your room if you want."

Shit! Stupid me! The thought of Bella doing that was something I wanted to become a reality. Not to mention the mental picture that popped into my mind was making my dress pants tighter.

"Wipe that smirk off your face, Masen, before I slap it off."

I looked up at Bella and saw that she was livid. "Sorry, I am a man you know."

"Masen, that's the stupidest and oldest excuse you guys use." She said as she sat down on the edge of the bed and slid off one of her high heels. "Ohhhh." She then reached down and removed the other. "That's so much better. My poor toes can finally move."

I rolled my eyes and chuckled.

"What?" She looked over at me with a fierce expression.

"Nothing, it's just you women are always so dramatic. I can't see how an innocent looking pair of shoes can cause so much 'pain'." When I said the word pain, I used air quotations.

"Alright, how about I buy you a pair of heels, and you parade around in them for a few hours and then see how good your feet feel at the end of the night."

"I don't think they will have a pair in my size, damn!" I had a look of mock disappointment on my face, and surprisingly, Bella laughed.

It sounded like bells. I would give anything to hear it again

"You will be surprised at what you can find on Internet these days."

With those words, both of us were sent into a round of laughter.

**BPOV**

After we finished laughing, it got a bit awkward with the silence, so Edward excused himself to go and shower. He told me to make myself comfortable.

Yeah, right! How the hell was I supposed to do that with a hot naked guy in the next room?

It just wasn't possible. Trust me, I know!

While Edward was in the shower, I tried to distract myself by looking at his room. You could definitely tell that someone else did the decorating but still keep it looking like a bachelor's room.

His wall color was beige, and he had dark cherry wood floors covered by a large cream colored rug. He had a sunken ceiling with recessed lighting over his bed and a chandelier in the center of his seating area.

The seating area contained two chaise lounges that had been placed slanted and facing each other. There was a weird looking table, the likes of which I had never seen before, that still looked stylish. There was a flat screen TV on his wall above the seating area and two doors on either side. One of which I knew was the bathroom, and the other, I assumed, was the closet.

He had a bench at the end of his bed, but there was enough space to walk in between the two. His headboard was a warm brownish gold color and extended out to his nightstands where he had two lamps for decoration. There were throw blankets and pillows on the bed and the lounges. A green plant in the corner of the room by the big bay windows tied the room together as well as the two pictures hanging on the wall above his bed.

I noticed his room was nowhere near as flashy as mine was, but it did have the look and feel of being warm and cozy.

After I finished looking around Edward's room, I looked over at the clock. Edward had been in the bathroom for over an hour and a half. Either he spends a lot of time making himself into the pretty boy he is, or he is doing something very naughty in there.

Hoping that I would be able to make my escape while he was occupied, I went quietly to the door and cracked it open. I peeked my head out and then my full body. I tiptoed over to the balcony and looked over hoping that Aro had called it a night.

However, lady luck was not on my side tonight because the old fart was still sitting in the same spot where we left him with his nose in that damn book!

I crept back to Edward's room, slowly shut the door back and rested my forehead against the cold wood with my eyes closed.

"I am never going to get out of here," I whispered to myself and banged my head against the door.

"I take it he is still out there?"

The sound of Edward's voice started me and caused me to turn around really fast. Unfortunately, Edward was right behind me, and my face got buried in his smooth, warm, clean, soap smelling chest.

I was frozen and couldn't move.

"Sorry if I scared you. I thought you heard me walk up behind you." He then put his hands on my arms, and I about melted.

This can't be happening! Focus Bella!

Pulling myself together, I did the only thing I could.

I relied on my trusty friend- sarcasm.

I pulled my face out of his chest, hesitantly I might add, and pushed him away.

"Well, you thought wrong, and to answer your question, yes, he is still reading, and it's already 11:15."

Edward looked over at the clock on his night stand to confirm the time. "Damn, I can't believe it's already that late."

As Edward studied his alarm clock, I couldn't help but study Edward.

He was in a pair of gym shorts and had no shirt on, which I already know considering my face smashed into his toned chest. He had the white fluffy towel wrapped around his neck, and his hair was already dried and in a disarray.

"Well, I'm sure he will be done soon. I just can't believe it's this late already. The old crow must have insomnia."

"Masen, that is what you said when we first got in here. And yes, it's already this late. We had dinner around 6:30 and then finally went into the living room around eight where you and Aro proceed to talk till about 9:45. Then we came in here, and you have been in the bathroom for the past hour and half doing only God knows what."

"Hey I know where you are going with that, Swan, and don't always be so quick to assume something."

"So, I'm wrong?"

"No, I never said that. I just said don't assume. I mean I could tell you what I did if you want me to."

I quickly threw my hands up in the air with my palms out. "I don't, and I repeat don't, want to hear about it."

Edward just chuckled, sat down on one of his lounges and grabbed the remote control.

I started pacing and ran my hand through my hair. I was getting antsy staying in here, and the more I thought about this, the more I realized that I could be at home right now, in my bed, sound asleep had I not agreed to this damn proposition. I stopped pacing for a second and turned to Edward.

"I opened Pandora's box when I agreed to do this."

I started my pacing again and only stopped when I had something to say to Edward. After about 40 minutes of walking back and forth and Edward turning on the TV, I finally sat on the edge of his bed and leaned back.

A yawn escaped from my mouth.

"Did you finally wear yourself out, my little firecracker?" Edward asked while smiling.

I rolled my eyes. Does this guy ever quit?

"Go check and see if he is gone, so I can go to my room and go to bed."

Sighing Edward got up from his seat and opened his door.

I slowly got up behind him. Edward and I walked to the door. Edward cracked it open and walked out into the hallway. I stayed in the room and prayed that he had finally turned in for the night. That wasn't the case, and I heard Aro speak.

"Edward, my boy, I thought you went to bed long ago."

"I was just coming down to get a glass of water."

"Oh, well please don't let me interrupt you then."

Then I heard nothing more. A few moments later, Edward came back into the room and handed me a glass of water.

"What happened?" I asked while sitting the glass down on his bedside table.

"He saw me standing at the balcony- that is what happened."

"This is downright problematic, Edward! It's past twelve now, and I am beyond ready to get into some comfortable pajamas and go to sleep."

I was seething and getting to the point where I thought about throwing something over the balcony to try and hit Aro to knock him unconscious. That, or kill Edward. I still couldn't make up my mind.

"Well, for tonight only, you will just have to stay in here, sorry"

"Excuse me?"

"Look, Bella, I have a big enough bed for the both of us. We are both adults here, so let's just suck it up and get some sleep."

He couldn't be serious!

"Edward, that's not going to happen!"

"And why not?"

"Well, first of all, I am not going to sleep in this." I waved my hand over my body to get his attention so he could see that I was still in my formal wear.

"Aw, well, I can take care of that. Hang on."

Edward walked to a door and opened it and then disappeared inside the room only to emerge moments later with clothing in his hand.

"Here. I know anything of mine that I give you will be big on you, but this is one of the shirts I had from when I was in school and is the smallest I could find in my closet. Also here are some boxers of mine that you are more than welcome to wear."

I took the clothes from his hands and looked at him. "Thanks."

"You're welcome. You already know where the bathroom is so help yourself."

I walked into the bathroom and looked around.

No wonder he stayed in here so long. It was marvelous. The walls had a dark brown and gold patterned wall paper on them, and there was a rounded step in leading into the shower that had shower heads in every direction and frosted glass acting as a barrier.

The white and brown diamond tile floors where slick and shiny. The marble his and her sinks on opposite sides of the room sat on what looked to be finely hand crafted white wooden cabinets. There was also a huge jet tub that looked very inviting. I noticed that the woman's sink area was not only bigger and had more cabinets than the man's, but it also had a make-up counter with a designers chair tucked under the nook. It was every woman's dream bathroom.

After I finished admiring his bathroom, I quickly shed my top and pants. I slid Edwards shirt and boxers on, which were both at least 3 sizes too big for me, so I had to roll the top of the boxers down until it was thick enough so the fabric would stay on my hips without falling off. However, because I had to roll them up so much, it made them shorter, and I felt self-conscious of it. His t-shirt had gym class written on it in big bold black letters and the number 17 underneath it. The shirt smelled like him and laundry detergent.

I have to admit, I did start to feel better now that I was in more comfortable clothing. I walked back to the bedroom to find Edward sitting on the edge of the bed.

"Feel better?"

"Yes, thank you. However, there is the matter of us sleeping together."

I thought I heard Edward mumble under his breath, but quickly dismissed it. I believe I am hearing things due to me being sleep deprived.

"Bella, we are just sharing a bed- that's all."

"I am not sleeping in the same bed with you, Edward. That violates our contract!"

"No, it doesn't. Our contract it says no sex. Clearly we are not going to be having sex, only sleeping."

"NO, Edward!"

"So then, what do you suggest?"

I walked over to the right side of the bed and pulled the cover back, I sat down on the bed and slide my feet under the covers.

"I suggest that you sleep somewhere else."

"Oh and where might that be? On the floor?"

"Isn't that where dogs usually sleep? Oh and while you're at it, make that on the closet floor, so that I can have a door shut between us"

Ok so maybe that was out of line, but he had been pissing me off this whole night and giving me P.J.s to sleep in doesn't help that much where I want to be nice to him.

"Woman, if you think I am sleeping on the floor, you have another thing coming. This is my room and my damn house. I will sleep anywhere I damn well please." With that said, he walked over to the left hand side of the bed and ripped the covers back.

**EPOV**

When Bella first came out of the bathroom, my first thought was damn she looks good in my shirt! That and the shorts I had given her. She had rolled them up on her waist line causing the fabric to move higher up her creamy soft legs, which caused me to have bad images in my mind. Well, good images but bad thoughts!

However, now my thought of her is what a fucking bitch.

I ripped the covers back and went to go slide in when Bella spoke.

"Edward, please I'm sorry for saying that. It was out of line."

"Go to sleep, Bella."

"I can't, not with you in here."

"And why is that?" I turned to look at Bella who was looking down at her hands and not wanting to make eye contact with me.

"Because, I have never had to share a bed with a man before."

All the sudden it clicked, and I did a double take.

"You mean to tell me you're still… Get out here!"

Ok so maybe not the best reaction for someone who basically just told me she never had sex before, but I couldn't help it. Bella was an attractive woman. I knew that she wouldn't have any trouble finding men who were interested in her, so it left me puzzled. Maybe she wanted to keep it that way. That's why she felt so strongly about this.

I knew this was something she probably kept private by the way she was looking down, and I had basically dragged it out of her due to my stupid ass self. I now understood where she came from, so without another word from me, I grabbed my pillow and the throw blanket that was on one of the chairs and made my way to the closet where I shut the door behind me.

As I was making my pallet on the floor, I realized just how innocent of a girl she was and started to think that maybe, we both opened Pandora's box after all.

**So what did ya'll think?**

**Pictures of Edward's bed/bathroom is on my profile.**

**The updates for my other stories will be coming up soon. I am still writing the chapters out and have a lot of editing to do. It always seems that as the story gets longer the chapters get harder to write. **

**Also I received a message not too long ago asking if I had a play list to go with my chapters, I didn't before, but I have had a few thoughts on it, and came up with some songs I found to be fitting for some of the chapters to my stories and will post them, however if you know one that you think will go with a chapter of mine on any of my stories, then please send me the name of the artist and title of the song and it will be posted if I agree with it. Thanks **

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**Till next time thank you so much for reading and reviewing**


	7. A Day At The Office

**A/N: Thank you so much for all of your reviews, favorites, and story alerts. I really appreciate it! I glad to see that everyone is still tagging along. Also I still need some song ideas for the past chapters that I put out. I have a few thoughts on it myself, but I would like to see if yall have any on it. Ok that's is for now.**

**Enjoy your chapter!**

**See you at the bottom!**

**DISCLAIMER:**

**I don't own Twilight or any of its characters. Only the plot line to this story!**

**Chapter 7**

**A Day At The Office**

**BPOV**

Once Edward found that out he seemed surprised, made a comment or two and then finally grabbed his bedding and went into the closet shutting the door behind him.

I hated having to tell him that. I just knew he was thinking that I was some kind of weirdo.

I am sure he had lots of girls who were experienced and lost there innocents a long time ago. I used to never be embarrassed of my choice to stay the way I was… until now.

Its not that I had never thought about it.

Its just I would rather have someone I am in love with to be my first and only one. I don't want to be like those girls I went to high school with. I didn't want to have sex with a guy and then compare it to my previous sex partner.

Not to mention this day in time people who slept around a lot had a great chance of catching something that soap couldn't wash off.

Besides from what I seen relationships are hard enough to deal with without the emotional attachment of sex. That and having to work straight out of high school to take care of Charlie didn't exactly allow me to have a vigorous dating life.

I switched the lamp off that was sitting on the bed side table next to me and laid on my back with the covers pulled up to my chin.

However I wasn't able to get comfortable. I sighed as I shifted onto my side and starred at the closed door that now separated me and Edward.

I was really surprised that Edward did that for me.

I guess he's not as bad as I thought. Although his ass is still on my shit list..

I yawned and closed my eyes waiting till sleep finally drew me into its blackness.

**EPOV**

The next morning I woke up feeling like I had been swung at and missed then shit at and hit. I was feeling pretty tired. I woke up off and on through out the night. The floor was like sleeping on concert.

I slowly picked myself up off the floor and heard everything pop once I was standing up.

Oh yeah this was going to be permanent back damage!

I slowly turned the knob to open the closet door and seen that Bella was sleeping soundlessly. Well its nice to know that at least one of use got a well rested nights sleep.

I looked at her more closely. She looked beautiful and peaceful. She was laying on her side with one hand under the pillow and the other hand under her cheek. Her long brunette hair was fanned out on the pillow and framed her tiny face. Her breathing was light and even. Her long eyelashes were touching the tips of her cheek bones and the corners of her plump pink lips looked to be raised ever so slightly in a smile.

The blanket was resting on the lower part of he hip and you could see where the shirt that I had given her had ridden up her torso during the night revealing the tight perfect stomach she had.

I have to say that I have had many women in my time, but I had always went to a hotel or there place. Nothing was ever done in my bed or my house for that matter because that's when they get attached. No lady other than family, close friends, house employees, and Bella know where I live at, but seeing Bella lie there in my sheets and on my pillow makes me wonder why I hadn't settled done yet.

I mean so far this whole marriage thing wasn't so bad…well other then not being able to have sex when I want it, but if I was to ever really get married then that wouldn't be a problem any ways.

I looked over at the clock and realized I only had thirty minutes to get ready for work and still have time to eat some breakfast with Aro.

I went into my closet and got my black dress pants and a blue button up shirt to go with it along with a matching tie and the jacket. I showered quickly and brushed my teeth. Once dressed I grabbed a pair of dress socks and my dress shoes. I went to the seat at the edge of the bed and put them on. Once I was done with that I went and put on deodorant and cologne. I didn't bother shaving being that I took care of that last night. I walked out the bathroom and gave one last look at Bella's sleeping form then shut the door behind me.

Once out in the hallway I walked done the stairs and into the dinning room. I was surprised to see Aro was already up and waiting on Mrs. Cope to bring him some breakfast.

"Ah good morning Edward."

"Good morning Aro. Did you sleep well?"

I asked as I sat down and sipped on some coffee that Mrs. Cope so graciously poured into my cup.

"Yes I sure did. However I am surprised that you are up this early Edward."

"I could say the same about you Aro."

"Ah yes well I don't get much sleep at night. I am to restless. Its like I am a twenty year old in this old worn out body."

Mrs. Cope came in with some bacon, eggs, toast, half of a grapefruit and some orange juice.

"Mr. Masen would you like me to prepare Mrs. Masen's breakfast as well?"

"No that wont be necessary Mrs. Cope she is still asleep. However if she wakes up and I have already left please make her whatever she desires."

Mrs. Cope nodded her head and left the room for me and Aro to eat our breakfast.

"So Edward I am looking forward to seeing how you have taken over your fathers company and what changes you have made. I knew your father he was a great man. True to his word and always decent to do business with."

"Thank you sir, but I don't ever remember my late father doing business with you."

"Oh he never did my boy, please don't miss understand me. I just have a few friends that did have the pleasure of doing business with your father. I was visiting a friend who was in the middle of negotiating with him and he happened to stop by at the same time I was passing through. I met him briefly, but in that small amount of time I could see what kind of man he was. I just hope that you follow in his footsteps."

With that Aro took and shoved a bite of food in his mouth. I could see right now that this wasn't going to get any easier and that if he kept making remarks like that I would go all postal on his old ass.

After breakfast we were walking out into the foyer when Aro asked if Bella was joining us for lunch today.

I guess he was here to see Bella more then he was here to come to an agreement on selling his company to me.

I hadn't anticipated this and it through me off guard. I didn't want him to get distracted from what his task was to do during his duration here so I quickly made up an excuse for Bella. I was pretty sure she wouldn't mind.

"Well she usually don't Aro. She is not one who likes listening to me discuss and talk business. Besides she is usually wondering around here or out shopping with friends."

"Well that's a shame. I was really looking forward to seeing how she interacts with you being at work and how you and her juggle what little time you have. My wife has lunch with me everyday when I am back home. It's the way of keeping our marriage close."

Remembering what Jasper had told me about Aro wanting to sell his company to a family man I quickly back tracked.

"Well I could see if she would like to join us."

"Good, Good, I will wait her while you go take care of that."

I walked back up the stairs murmuring words under my breath such as "Stupid' and "ridiculous" and "the things I have to do"

Bella isn't going to eat lunch with us today I can see that right now, but being true to my word I walked back up the stairs and into my room. She was still sleeping so instead of waking her and asking her this stupid question I just wrote her a note and stuck it on the bed side table beside her.

I thought about not even doing that and just telling Aro that Bella was simply not interested, however I then thought about it some more and realized that could come back to bite me in the ass. Especially if Aro brought the subject up at dinner tonight and Bella was completely unaware of the situation.

I walked back down stairs to see Aro had already put his jacket on and was looking at me.

"Well?"

What is with this guy?

"She was still sleeping so instead of waking her I wrote her a note."

With that said I opened to door and ushered for Aro to go out first where Eric was waiting with the car.

The rain last night had managed to turn into a slushy snow fall due to the temperatures going down over night. However to see the powdery white stuff on everything was quiet beautiful I thought while we were heading to the office.

Once at the office I showed Aro around the building and showed him the basis of operations. I saved the best for last.

My office.

We stepped into the elevator and I pushed the 45th floor button.

The ride when I am by myself usually isn't long, but since I was with Aro today and I knew he was critiquing everything about the way I ran my company it seemed like an eternity before we reached our destination.

We stepped off the elevator and into the reception area.

Lauren was already there sitting at her desk typing away.

When she heard us get off the elevator she looked up from her desk and greeted us.

"Good Morning Mr. Masen."

"Good Morning Lauren this is Aro Marcus. He will be coming in with me for a while so make sure to find out how he likes his coffee and do everything you can to make him feel welcome."

"It's nice to meet you Mr. Marcus."

"Nice to meet you to. I like my coffee strong and black. No cream or sugar."

It was strange to see how he acted toward Lauren compared to Mrs. Cope and Bella.

I looked at him momentarily and unlocked my office door. I gestured that he go in first and followed behind him.

"Aro feel free to look around and make yourself comfortable I just need to take care of a few things first."

Aro nodded at me and went over to one of my book shelves.

I quickly closed the door behind me and turned to Lauren.

Lauren had gathered up all the messages she had already taken this morning and handed them to me. I started shuffling through them and spoke.

"Lauren if I get any calls today I want you to connect them directly to my office line. Don't worry about answering them. I have some personal calls that will be coming through and would like to keep them that way. Also after you get Aro's coffee I will have a list of task that need to be done before the day is through. One last thing I changed your lunch hour, it will no longer be at twelve I now moved it to 11. Any questions?"

I looked at her waiting for her to say anything, but she just continued to look stupid as she tried to process it all in her tiny pea brain.

When I realized she wasn't going to answer I told her to get his coffee and then get to work.

My life felt like a whirlwind so many things I had to change due to Bella. Like for instance I would never answer my own calls first they would always go through my secretary and she would decide what was important and what wasn't and then patch it through to me. However I couldn't chance Bella calling and her answering it.

Also there was a matter of the lunch business. If Bella did agree to meet us for lunch I couldn't take the chance of Lauren saying something and blow are cover had she seen us.

I walked back into the office to find Aro seated in a chair in front of my desk.

"Is everything alright my boy?"

"Yes Aro everything is fine."

I sat down behind my desk and pulled the chair closer.

"I want to apologize if I offended you earlier when I was talking to your secretary."

I looked at Aro

"I was wondering about the exchange between you two yes."

No since in lying about it.

"I have a gift Edward I can sense when people are being fake with me."

"You can?"

_Oh shit!_

"Yes I can and that secretary of yours is the fakest they come. From her hair all the way down to her slimy sweet job performance. I wouldn't be surprised if you haven't had complaints filed."

He wasn't to far away from hitting the nail on the head with the hammer.

"I had a few, yes."

"Well I am not trying to tell you how to run your establishment or anything, but why do you keep her around if she is a weak link."

Good question why do I keep her around? Then it came to me. He wants family man he will get family man. This will be Edward Masen's acting at its finest.

"Well Aro I would prefer not to fire her because she has a family. She is a single mother who needs this job and its one of the only jobs she could find were she leaves at a reasonable time and doesn't have to work weekends."

Aro face took on a look of understanding. I knew I had him there and the best part of it all was everything that I had told him was true.

Lauren had a three year old son with some guy she had an affair with. Needless to say the wife found and everything got blown out of proportion. He signed all rights over to Lauren to keep from having to pay child support. Yes it was a sad story, but she still hasn't learned her lesson because rumor has it that she is still a whore and makes her rounds frequently.

Although I figured it was best to leave that part out when explaining my reasoning to Aro.

**BPOV**

I woke up to the warm sun on my eyelids. I opened my eyes and stretched while I looked out the windows. It appears that the rain we had last night freshened everything up and brought it to life.

The sky was a clear blue with a few white puffs of clouds splattered through it. The sun was bright and reflected of the trees leaves.

I got up out of bed and went straight to the bathroom. I looked at myself in the mirror before I went through my morning routine.

After I had peed I was about to get in the shower when I realized I didn't have any of my clothes in here. Other then the ones from last night, but who takes a shower and puts dirty clothes back on? That completely defeats the purpose. I debated on walking out into the hallway and head back to my room, but I didn't know if Edward and Aro had left yet and I sure as hell didn't want to run into Aro this morning wearing this getup.

I decided that the only way to find out was to see if Edward was still sleeping in the closet.

I walked out of the bathroom and was on my way to the closet when something white on the night stand caught my eye.

I walked over, picked up the paper and unfolded.

There in the most elegant handwriting I had ever seen was a letter from Edward.

_Bella,_

_You were sleeping so soundly that I didn't want to wake you. When you get this call me at the office or on my cell phone. Mrs. Cope will give you the numbers. I need to talk to you today about having lunch with Aro, me, and some of the other guys at the office. If you decide to come I will try and make it as comfortable as I can for you by inviting the other guys wives as well. Talk to you soon._

_Edward_

That was kind of sweet of him.

Well the fact that Edward had left me a note told me that he had already went to the office and that the cost was clear to walk back down to my bedroom.

After I had showered I put on some clean shorts and a t-shirt and made my way to the kitchen.

When I walked in I heard Mrs. Cope humming as she loaded the dishwasher.

I cleared my throat to alert her to my presence.

"Aw Good Morning Mrs. Masen would you like me to fix you some breakfast?"

"Oh no ma'am I don't want you to go out of your way after you already cleaned the kitchen. I will just get something simple like a piece of fruit."

"Are you sure dear? Cause I promise you its not a problem."

"I'm positive, but could show me where yall keep the fruit at in the enormous kitchen?"

Mrs. Cope smiled at me and pointed over the large decorative bowl sitting on the counter that was overflowing with colorful fruit.

I smiled at her and went to search from my breakfast.

I decided that I wanted a banana.

Mrs. Cope apparently knowing what I was going to go after next had already sat a glass on the counter.

"Help yourself to whatever you want in the fridge dear."

I opened the stainless steel fridge and grabbed the orange juice to fill my glass.

Since I didn't have a lot to eat from breakfast instead of sitting in the dinning room I just leaned against the counter in the kitchen and finished my meal.

After I was done and had thrown my garbage away I went to walk out of the kitchen before I remembered I needed the numbers to reach Edward.

"Mrs. Cope?"

"Yes?"

"Would it be to much trouble if I asked you for the number to Edwards job and cell phone?"

"No not at all dear."

She motioned for me to follow her.

She led me to the library and went behind a desk to pull the chair out for me to sit in. She pulled the phone on the desk closer to me and opened the top right hand side of the desk. She pulled out a piece of paper that had been laminated and had rows of numbers on it.

"Here you go Mrs. Masen here is Edwards office number and here is his cell number. Is there anything else I can do for you?"

"No ma'am you have been more than helpful. Thank you."

She smiled and walked out of the room leaving me to my phone calls.

**EPOV**

I had just gotten through taken a call when my phone rang again.

"Edward Masen."

"Edward? Its Bella."

"Oh hi hold on a sec."

I put my hand over the phone.

"Aro could I have a moment to talk to Bella please?"

"Of course my boy. I need a fresh cup of coffee anyways."

Aro got up with his coffee cup in tow and left my office shutting the door behind him.

"Ok now we can talk Bella. Sorry about that. Listen if you don't want to go its completely fine. I am leaving the choice up to you."

"Whose all going to be there Edward?"

"Well Aro, Me, Jasper and Emmett, but I can ask them to invite there wives if that would make you more comfortable…. I mean if you decide to go."

She hesitated before answering me.

"I think that would make me more comfortable."

"So your going?"

"Yes. What time do I need to be at your office?"

"12, but let me call Jasper and see if Alice can go and get you, if she can then you and her can just met us at the restaurant. How does that sound?"

"That sounds great just um get back to soon so I will know what's going on."

"Ok I will. Call you soon. Bye Bella."

"Bye."

The line went dead and I hung up only to dial Jasper office number.

"Jasper Whitlock's office. Leah speaking, how my I help you?"

"Leah it Edward patch me through to Jazz please."

"One moment Mr. Masen."

The sound of elevator music came on then line while I waited to be connected.

"This is Jasper."

"Hey Jazz."

"Oh hey man. What can I do for you?"

"Does Alice have any plans today?"

"No not that I know of… why what do you need her for now?"

Jasper always caught on quickly so I wasted no time in beating around the bush. I told him everything.

"So do you think she will join us? I wouldn't be asking for her help so much man its just I know that this is new to Bella and her and Alice seemed to really hit it off yesterday."

"I don't think it will be a problem let me call Alice and explain the situation and if she says yes I will tell her to just go on by your house."

"Okay thanks man I owe you."

Right after I hung the phone up with Jasper I heard a light knock on my door.

"Come in."

Aro opened the door peaking his head in silently asking if it was okay to come back in. I waved him in and he came to sit back down after shutting the door behind him.

"So is she going to be joining us?"

I was still unaware if Alice was going to say yes or no.

Just then my cell went off and there was a text from Jasper

_She said yes. Alice is on her way over to Bella now. Called Emmett for you, he said Rose couldn't make it today._

"It appears that Bella will be joining us today after all."

"Splendid."

Aro said and took a sip of his coffee.

**BPOV**

After I had gotten off the phone with Edward I had left the library and went into the living room to wait on his return call. It had been almost thirty minutes since we talked and I was getting worried that Alice wasn't able to come.

I sure that if that was the case the lunch would still run smoothly. Its just that she would have made it a lot more comfortable. I know Edward would probably do everything in his power to help me relax and I would be grateful for that only I wasn't that comfortable with him yet.

Truth be known I really didn't want to go, but I knew this was something that I had signed on for. Edward had said the choice was mine, but I knew that I needed to go. I knew this was something that would probably help Edward in the long run so I could suck it up and put on some big girl panties for today.

The door Bella rang causing me to snap out of my thoughts and join the land of the living again.

I seen Mrs. Cope head to the foyer to get the door. I could hear some talking and then it went silent. All the sudden I seen this flash of black running towards me and pulled me into a hug.

"Bella its so nice to see you again."

**A/N: Okay sorry to have to end it there, but while I have been writing this I have had strep throat…. Ugh!**

**So with that being said I need to rest and end it there. My medicine is kicking in and its making me really sleepy.**

**The next chapter will be there lunch date and I may through in a few little extra's for yall. It depends on how I see it working with the chapter.**

**Please review and tell me whatcha think.**

**Thanks for reading and reviewing. **

**Till next time hope everybody has a great weekend**


	8. Picture Perfect Lunch

**A/N: Hello to all my patent readers! Hope you are still following along. I know it has been a good while since I have wrote a chapter for this story or any of my others ones for that matter, however I am back on FF and I will try to update more often. **

**Undying Compassion has already been updated and I plan on updating the rest of my stories as well so keep a look out for that. Also I am really sorry about the typo's I have been making. I proof read them before I post, but I still miss a lot. **

**Okay so here is your next chapter. Hope you enjoy it. **

**I will see you at the bottom! **

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything Twilight**

**Chapter 8**

**Picture Perfect Lunch**

**BPOV**

To say I was surprised to see Alice was an understatement. I never even heard back from Edward rather or not she was going to be able to go. She released me from her hug and stepped back.

"Girl what did you do? Just get out of bed?"

I laughed.

"That's exactly what I did.… well about thirty minutes ago anyways."

"Well we have a lunch to get you ready for so no time to waste."

"So you are going to be there today?"

"Of course Bella I am not about to throw you to the sharks this early in the game."

Alice sat her purse on the sofa and motioned with her finger for me to turn around.

I turned slowly looking at Alice strangely when she was in my eyesight. She had a look of inspiration on her face. A look that I had already seen before and knew what it meant.

She had that same look yesterday when she came over to help me get ready for dinner with Edward and Aro.

Without her even telling me I started towards the stairs and was going to my room. She just picked up her purse and giggled as she followed behind me.

"You know Bella I knew I liked you for a reason. All of my other friends dread when I come over to fix them up, but you don't say anything you just go to your room and wait for me to transform you into the beautiful woman you are."

I looked back at Alice with a smile.

"Well give it some time I haven't known you that long remember?"

"Touché"

When we got to my room Alice went straight into my closet to start looking for what I was going to where. I just sat on the bed with my feet crossed.

"So where are we going to eat anyways? Edward was supposed to call me back and tell me that you were going with us, but he never even did that."

"Well that's because I was supposed to be here a little earlier to let you know I was going, but I had some time trying to find out what I was going to where today."

Alice came out of my closet hold a pile of clothes with which she laid them on the bed carefully.

"Okay Bella go take a shower and I will have your outfit ready for when you get out."

I got up off the bed and made my way towards the bathroom. I still had Edwards clothes on for last night and I didn't want to throw them on the floor as I didn't know how he would have reacted to me doing that so I undressed and folded them neatly and put them on the counter.

I turned the water on and waited for the water to become just right and stepped in.

The warm spray of the water was all around me and was so relaxing. I just stood under the spray for a while until I heard Alice beating on the door.

"Come on Bella. Hurry up. I already finished picking out your outfit."

With that being said I quickly grabbed my shampoo and went into my routine of taking a shower. When I was done I shut the water off and grabbed a towel for the cabinet, dried off and wrapped it around me.

I opened the door to see that Alice had set up the same chair and make up from yesterday. She patted the seat for me to sit down and quickly began to work on my wet hair.

After about an hour of sitting in the chair and being hair sprayed to death Alice stepped away.

"Well go look at yourself in the mirror and tell me what you think."

With the towel still wrapped around me I picked myself up from the chair and walked over to the vanity table. Alice had done it yet again.

My eyes had a smoky look to them and my lashes were coated in mascara and looked long and full, my eyebrows looked shapely, my lips a plump natural color, and my complexion had a glow about it.

Alice had taken my hair and pulled it up into a messy knot and left my bangs and some strands on the back of my neck down, only they looked as if they fell out of the loose knot naturally. **(picture on profile)**

"Well what do you think?"

Alice asked as she came up behind me to fix a strand of hair that had fallen out of place.

"Once again Alice you have transformed an ugly duckling into a beautiful swan."

"Bella you were beautiful before I got a hold of you. You need to have better self esteem."

I looked down at my feet and couldn't help but feel the awkwardness fall over the room. Alice must have felt the same way because after a moment of silence went by the clapped her hands and started talking ninety to nothing.

"Well its time to get you dressed in the outfit I picked out for you. Today is more cold then it was yesterday since last night everything turned to slush. I hope you don't put up to big a fight about what I picked out, not that I think you will, but anyways its laying out on your bed so you can go and get dressed."

She smiled at me and turned to walk into my bathroom toting along the make-up bag with her.

I just smiled as I walked over to the bed and picked up the clothing. I have no idea how she managed to say all of that with out taking a breath in between.

Alice had laid out a pair of black skinny jeans, a long sleeve light purple colored shirt, a grey jacket, a pair of black knee high boots, a light purple colored scarf, and a smoky colored purse. **(picture on profile)**

All in all the outfit wasn't to bad. I never walked in boots before, but it cant be any worse then high heels. I guess that was the reason why Alice thought I was going to put up a fight. The boots.

Once dressed I walked into the bathroom and looked at Alice through the mirror.

She was applying lip gloss.

"You ready?"

"Yep I think I am."

"Step back for a minute Bella."

I stepped back and watched as Alice looked me over.

She came up to me and fixed my scarf to the way she wanted it and buttoned my jacket up all the way then stepped back again.

"Damn I am good!"

We both smiled and walked out of the bedroom.

On the way out the door Alice had grabbed her coat from the closet that Mrs. Cope had stored it in and put it on.

Alice's coat was black and had three big buttons on the side of the jacket. She had on light skinny blue jeans and finished her look of with a black scarf and of course her designer purse. **(picture of jacket on profile)**

Once outside the house we hopped into her car and as Alice started it I made sure to buckle my seat belt tightly.

"So where are we going to meet Edward?"

I asked as I brought my hand up to the "oh shit" bar and grabbed on.

She pulled out of the driveway and onto the road.

"Well I thought that we would be meeting them at the office, but Jasper told me not to. So lets find out shall we."

She pulled out her cell phone and started to text Jasper never once taking her eyes of the road. Something told me she has had a lot of practice doing this.

**EPOV**

I sat there in my chair running my fingers thru my hair while letting out a breath. This day has been one of the hardest days in my entire life. For Aro to be such an old geezer he sure is sharp with his questions.

Having someone judge your every decision you made for your company sure gets old and let me tell you learning to bite my tongue has been very hard.

There are times I want so bad to tell him to go fuck himself, but I remember I want to buy his multi-million dollar company so I have to be on my best behavior.

Thank God I have a moment to myself so I can regroup.

I sure do owe Emmett one. The poor bastard was nice enough to take Aro on a tour of the rest of the building to get him out of my hair for a while. I have a feeling I am going to catch hell for that later from him.

"Mr. Mason?"

Lauren's nasally voice came over the intercom.

"Yes?"

"Mr. Whitlock is here to see you sir."

"Send him in."

The line disconnected and moments later Jasper walked thru the door with his cell phone in his hand.

"Hey Man Alice just sent me a text wanting to know where she needs to meet us for lunch."

"Shit is it that time already?"

I looked at the clock on the wall. Sure enough it was.

"Well tell Alice to meet us down at…."

I was trying to think of some place secluded that way we could eat in privacy and Bella wouldn't be spotted with me. That was the last thing I needed right now.

"How about we meet at Eclipse?"

That was a perfect place. The atmosphere was dim and they had a room for VIP's on the second floor.

"Eclipse it is man."

Jasper said as he started texting Alice back.

"Good we are closer then they are to so we should get there first if we leave now. Have you seen Emmett?"

I asked Jasper as I stood up and put my suit jacket on and buttoned it.

"The last time I seen him was on the 25th floor with Aro. I got to tell you man he didn't look to happy."

"Who Aro or Emmett?"

"Emmett. If I were you I would be afraid."

I rolled my eyes and quickly grabbed my phone. I dialed Emmett's number and pushed the send button.

"Hello?"

"Emmett lets go we are fixing to leave for lunch. My treat today."

I was hoping that would be enough to smooth things over with Emmett getting stuck with Aro. For the most part Emmett was a pretty easy going guy, but when he got pissed your best bet would be to stay out of his way. I only seen him like that once and I got to tell you it wasn't pretty.

But I digress.

"Alright man me and Aro will meet you down in the lobby."

We both hung up the phone and I motioned to Jasper for us to get going.

Once we walked out of my office I turned and locked it up. I then turned around to Lauren.

"We are off to lunch. You are now allowed to take my calls. Also I want for you to arrange a limo waiting down stairs for me ready to take us to Eclipse. We will be back in about an hour or so."

"Ok Mr. Mason."

As I started to walk away Lauren picked up the phone and started talking to one of my drivers on stand by.

Jasper and I headed inside the elevator and pushed the ground floor button.

Just as Emmett had said he and Aro were there to meet us.

We all walked outside and slide inside the waiting limo. As we took off I couldn't help, but worry how this lunch was going to go.

Once we pulled up to Eclipse we all got out and walked into the restaurants dimly light environment. I didn't bother making a reservation I knew that I would be able to get in just with the clout and money I had. Money always worked.

I walked up to the podium in which a guy who looked to be about seventeen was the host.

I stood there with my hand in my pockets.

"Hi I need the VIP room please."

"Do you have a reservation?"

He asked while he opened his black book and began searching.

"Yes."

I said as I pulled my hand out of my pocket and pointed to a blank section on the page. Making it look like I was pointing to my name. When I moved my hand away there was a fifty dollar bill in its place. The guy quickly shoved it in his pocket.

"Mason is the name."

"Yes Mr. Mason I see it right here. Right this way."

We all followed him up the stairs and into the lavishly decorated VIP room.

"Excuse me sir we are going to be expecting two more. There names are Alice and Bella."

"Of course sir. I will send them up along with your waiter as soon as they get here."

**BPOV**

It wasn't long before we arrived at the restaurant. It was called Eclipse and as soon as we walked inside it was like the sun had disappeared. The place was dimly light and all the waiters was wearing black outfits with blood red blouses.

Alice and I went up to the podium. A guy who had black hair and was skinny and gangly looking greeted us.

"Hello and welcome to Eclipse. I'm your host Tyler."

"Hi Tyler we are here to meet our husbands."

"What are your names?"

"Alice and Bella."

"Aw yes right this way."

On the way to the stairs he tapped a girl on the shoulder. She had brown curly frizzy hair and was short. Her name tag read Jessica.

"VIP room, big tipper, your on honey."

We followed Tyler up the stairs with Jessica tagging along behind us.

When we got to the VIP room Tyler stepped aside for us to see the one and only table set up in the room where the men had already been seated and were talking.

"Mason party your other two guest have arrived."

I watched as a guy stood up from the table and pulled a chair out for Alice next to him. I had to assume that it was Jasper. I knew Aro already so I guessed that the big guy was Emmett. Edward stood up from the table and did the same for me. Once I was seated Edward sat back down in his chair and everyone just looked around in an awkward silence.

Just when it felt that all eyes were on me our waitress walked up to the table holding menu's.

"Hello my name is Jessica and I will be your waitress. Here are your menu's."

She went around the table and handed Edward, Aro, Emmett, Jasper, Alice, and then finally me a menu. She took out her ticket pad and a pen.

"What can I get everyone to drink."

Once our drink orders had been called out and written down on her pad she stuffed the pen back into her pocket, tore the paper off the pad and walked off with it in her hand.

I opened my menu and started looking at the food they had.

It all looked delicious. It was a restaurant that had a little bit of everything. Chinese, Mexican, Italian, bar-be-que, seafood, steak, and more.

I contemplated for a moment on what I wanted. It didn't help matters that from the corner of my eye I could see Edward staring at me intensely.

**EPOV**

When Bella first walked in I had to do a double take. Once again her beauty had me speechless. She was dressed in the simplest of clothing, but she still looked radiant. But then again she could probably where a paper bag and make it look like she was wearing something off the catwalk.

When she sat down beside me and started looking at her menu I couldn't help but stare at her. The way she lightly bit down on her full red bottom lip as she studied her menu. The way she would take her delicate tiny hand and sweep her bangs out of her eyes and to the side of her face.

I was snapped out of my trance when our waitress returned with our drinks.

"Are you all ready to order?"

Emmett was the first to start.

"Yeah I will have a rack of ribs and a steak the biggest one you have make that two of them with a baked potato that has all the trimmings. I would also like to have a side of cole-slaw, cabbage, the seafood platter and a bowl of the red beans and rice."

I looked around the table to see everybody's eyes big and all of Emmett. The waitress looked to be in shock too.

"Okay who is next?"

She asked.

"Ma'am I wasn't finished I also want a dessert however I cant decide between the cheesecake or the old fashioned carrot cake. Which do you recommend? You know what I will just take them both."

Emmett looked over at me and smiled. Damn asshole. I should have just taken a beating from him instead of offering to buy him lunch.

The waitress went around the table and the rest of us order only one item then it came to Bella.

"I think I will have the mushroom ravioli please."

The waitress took all our menus after she finished writing down our orders.

"Ok I will be out with your food when its ready in the mean time would anyone care for a refill or anything else?"

We all shook are heads no and she walked away reading over the two tickets she had written our orders on. Emmett's alone filled up one whole ticket.

The conversation between everyone was light and easy. Aro didn't really say much instead he looked as though he was in his own little world. He would answer any of the questions that were directed at him, but that was it.

It made me wonder what he was thinking about.

After our food arrived we all ate and when we finished we watched as Emmett continued to indulge himself. How a man can eat that much is beyond me.

Once finished I waited for the waitress to come up and asked for the ticket.

She came back shortly with a little black book that held my receipt. When I opened it up and seen the total I blamed it all on Emmett.

$278.15 plus I still had to leave a tip. It wasn't that I couldn't afford it. I was just embarrassed that Emmett ordered all that food and managed to eat it all.

I pulled out my billfold and pulled out $350 and placed it in the black book and left it in the middle of the table.

I didn't think our waitress was that good, but she did have to carry all of Emmett's food up the stairs so that why I gave her the fifty dollar tip and what was left out of the three hundred.

Everybody stood up from the table and I noticed that Jasper and Alice were holding hands. Realizing that this is what married couples do I quickly grabbed Bella's hand. I must have frightened her because at first I could feel her jump a little then relax.

We all walked down the stairs and out of the restaurant. Jasper gave Alice a kiss and walked her to her car where they could talk a little more in private.

I knew what had to be done since Aro was there, I just hoped that Bella did as well. With my hand still in hers I pulled her to me and met my lips with her silky soft ones. I only held the kiss for mere seconds, but that was enough to make me want more. When we broke free Bella just looked at me.

Maybe she felt it too.

**UNKNOWNPOV**

I clicked the button on my camera and snapped even more photos as Edward Mason continued walking out of the restaurant holding hands with some woman. I wasn't able to see what she looked like so I tried to zoom in using my camera. However before I could get a good look at her face He pulled her close and kissed her. I took advantage of that and snapped even more photos. When they pulled apart they just stared at each other for a moment and then he began walking her to the car.

He opened the door for her to get in and when she turned to look at him I got the face shot of her I was looking for.

She was a beauty too. A classic beauty. One that is rare to come by.

One you would expect a guy like Edward Mason to be seen with.

I waited to see if they would kiss one more time so I could get another photo of that, but thanks to the sunlight something shiny caught my eye and I zoomed my camera in on the bright light. When I came into focus I seen it was a wedding ring. I quickly snapped a few shots of it and then zoomed in on Edwards hand smiling as I seen his wedding ring. I snapped some shots of his and then one of the whole scene before me and smiled as I walked away knowing that the tabloids and news would pay big for the pictures and story I had.

**A/N: **

**Okay so what did you think?**

**Emmett cracks me up on how he planned on getting even with Edward.**

**I actually know someone who can eat every bit of that and still be hungry…. And are you ready for this he is really skinny. If I were to eat all of that I would be 500 pounds. Life isn't fair!**

**Lol!**

**Thank you so much for reading my story and I hope you stick around long enough to send a review my way. I would love to hear from you.**

**Until next time…. **


	9. Picture Worth A Thousand Words

**AN**

**Hello Everyone…. Long time no see eh?**

**So I finally finished The Interview That Changed Everything and I am now dedicating my full attention to this story…. When I have the time to actually write! **

**Yes, yes I know that you are all happy about that…. Or at least I know one person is for sure lol!**

**Anyways here is your next chapter**

**DISCLAIMER**

**I don't own anything Twilight however the plot of the story is all mine **

**Chapter 9**

**Picture Worth A Thousand Words**

**JAMESPOV**

I sat in the lobby waiting angrily as I looked at the clock….. That damn asshole has been making me wait for over an hour… he's lucky he pays me good money or I would have been gone with in the first ten minutes of waiting.

I looked down at my lap deciding to find something else to look at other then the clock. Or I would only continue to get all the more angry. That was when I picked up the large manila envelope and opened it.

I thumbed through all the pictures of Edward and his wife. Some where of them smiling at each other, others where of them when they were kissing, and then some I managed to snap when they were talking. The last two pictures were the ones I had taken of there hands… the proof showing they were married…. The rings! I flipped back thru them once more. As I studied the pictures I could see why he wanted to keep her a secret…. She was very beautiful. I can only imagine what will happen once the media gets a hold of these pictures…. They will be the talk of the city. It could cause major strain on them…. Its almost kind of sad to be doing this to them….you notice that I said almost! The price is just to great to pass up and in this town money talks. Besides Edward is the type of man who is smart and can probably talk his way out of this.

I slipped the pictures back into the envelope and looked up just in time to see a lady walk out of the office with her hair in a mess and her skirt with the seams in the front instead of on the sides like it supposed to be. She had hair high heeled shoes in her hand and turned back one last time to blow a kiss inside the office.

As she walked by me she winked and then continued heading towards the elevator.

I looked back to the office door to see Mr. Black come out. He was buttoning his shirt back up.

"Ah Mr. James Nomad! Its great to see you again."

Jacob said as he tucked his shirt into his pants.

"Mr. Black, same here. I was beginning to wonder why you kept me waiting so long, but now I know why. You got yourself a beautiful lady."

He turned and motioned me to follow him to his office.

"Oh her… we are not dating. She is one of the many college graduates that put in her application here… lets just say she was sealing the deal on making sure she was getting the job over all the other girls who applied for the position. The only problem with that is I already had about six other girls seal the deal before her."

He barked out a laugh as he set down in his chair behind his desk.

I laughed with him, but the whole time I was thinking what a rat bastard he was. I may take pictures of people and sell them to the highest bidder, but I would never do that to girls…. For one thing Victoria would string my ass up and for another if the girls spreads her legs open to get a job then chances are they wrap there legs around anyone one on any other occasion…. There's no telling what this jackass may have caught!

"Oh so then it looks like you have a tuff decision on your hands on which one to hire."

Jacob leaned back in his chair and put his feet up on his desk.

"Nah not really. I will just hire the one bitch that didn't sleep with me and then once she is hired in I will soon enough have her spread out on my desk screaming my name while I give her one hell of a fucking."

Again he barked out a laugh and then cleared his throat. He removed his feet from the table and scooted his chair closer. His face got serious and he clasped his hands together.

"Now Mr. Nomad I believe you got something for me?"

"Yes I do…. But I want to see the cash before I give them to you."

"Fair enough."

Jacob pushed his chair back and pushed up out of it. He then walked over to a wall of cabinets. He pulled open one of the doors and took out a black briefcase. He then walked back over to the desk and set it down on top of it.

"Its all there, but you are more then welcome to look for yourself."

He sat back down in his chair as I pushed open the latches on the case. I raised the lid and seen twenty thousand dollars in cold hard cash. I closed the briefcase and handed him the envelope with the pictures.

He opened it immediately and began looking through them.

"Very good Mr. Nomad…. You never disappoint me."

He put the pictures down on his desk and looked me in the eyes.

"Stay close I made need you to take some more in the future."

**JACOBPOV**

I watched as the brainless Mr. Nomad left my office with a smile on his face as he carried out the case of money.

Dumb pathetic bastard.

He didn't realize that I could sell this to the press for twice as much as what I gave him.

Oh well his loss and my gain.

I flipped through the pictures again and studied Edward and his so called wife.

I couldn't wait till these photos appeared on the news and in the papers. I almost wish I was there to see the look on Edward's face once he sees that his secret has been exposed.

I shoved the pictures back in the envelope and pulled my cell phone out from my pants pocket. I then scrolled thru my contacts till I found the one I was looking for and then pressed the green button.

After the third ring the person I was waiting for picked up on her end of the line.

"Hello?"

"Hey Leah how is my favorite little sex kitten?"

"Oh Jacob I thought you were never going to call me back… are you wanting to meet tonight?"

I thought about this for a second…. Leah Clearwater wasn't a bad fuck… she had a good body and a tight cunt, however she was very clinging. If you fucked her she called you the next morning already planning your wedding day.

However the more I thought of it the more I wanted to slide my dick in her. Fuck I was getting hard just thinking about it. I would just ignore her like I always did afterwards.

"Uh yeah, but first I want to talk business and then I plan on fucking you into oblivion"

"Great can't wait…. My house at eight?"

"Sure, see you soon."

I didn't wait for her to say goodbye I just hung up and then looked at the time.

It was almost seven. By the time I leave the office, go home and shower it will be about that time to head over there.

I stood up, grabbed the pictures and walked out of my office closing the door behind me all the while thinking of how I couldn't wait to see the news tomorrow morning.

**BPOV **

The ride home was a bit different then the ride to the restaurant…. For some reason I wasn't near as scared as before of Alice's driving.

Perhaps it because I was getting used to it or maybe I was still thinking about Edwards lips being on mine.

Alice seemed to notice.

"So Bella what did you think of Eclipse?"

"Hmm oh it was nice. The waitress was a little rude, but the food was great."

"Yeah I noticed she was being rude towards you also… I wouldn't let that bother you though. All the times that me and Jasper have gone with Edward somewhere and he has had a date all the female waitress are usually jealous and tend to treat them like crap. I hate to say this girl, but you better get used to it."

"Yeah I guess so."

Then I started to think about just how many other girls Edward has dated and wonder where I land on the scale of one to ten when compared to his previous dates.

Soon enough the car stopped in front of Edwards house and Alice turned to me.

"Bella I sure did have fun and I am so glad I got to spend some time with you. We need to do it again really soon."

She then reached over and hugged me

"Yeah that would be great Alice."

I said as I squeezed her back.

I then let go of her and opened my car door. I stepped out into the cold air and looked down in the car.

"See you later girl."

She smiled and waved with both of her hands like a happy dork and then sped out of Edwards drive way once I closed her car door.

I walked to the door and let myself into the warm house. I couldn't help but look at the clock when I walked into the living room. I was wondering when Edward was going to be home.

Then I thought to myself… why should I care…. Its not like we are actually married or anything although you could have fooled me with the way he was acting at lunch today, but then again wasn't that the point of it all…. To fool people?

As I flopped down on the couch I could hear the phone ring from the kitchen and I wondered if I should answer it or if Mrs. Cope was going too.

After the third ring I picked myself up off the couch and jogged to the kitchen in hopes that I would get there in time to answer it.

"Hello Mason's residents"

"Bella?"

"Edward?"

"Yeah hey listen me and Aro are going to be home a little later then usually… I have a business meeting and Aro wants to sit in on it. Anyways could you please inform Mrs. Cope so she wont have dinner ready to early."

"Sure, but what time should I tell her to aim for?"

"Oh say about eight give or take a few minutes."

"Ok will do Edward."

"Ok thanks see you later, bye."

"Bye."

"Oh and baby?"

"yes?"

"I love you."

Before I could say anything back the side of his line went dead.

I guess in a way I was relieved that he hung up before I had a chance to say anything…. Or maybe that was his plan. Maybe he didn't want nor expect me to say anything, but then again if that was the case why say it?

Aro!

He had to be in the room. That is the only logical explanation for it. Just like today with the kiss. Edward would have never done that if Aro wouldn't have been there. It was all a show.

I noticed I still had the phone receiver in my hand and as I hung it up I grew happy by his words and then I mental slapped myself….

What the hell Bella? We just went thru this… you have no reason to be happy! This is not a real romance.

You are acting like some giddy teenage school girl who just got her first crush on the quarterback.

Remember it's a contract… besides I love you is just three little meaningless words to me and that was just a little peck on the lips kind of kiss. I have had better….

Yeah lots of times!

Haven't I?

This thought pissed me off to think that Edward was the best kiss I have gotten when it was such a small unfeeling kiss with no emotions behind it.

I was so deep in my thoughts that I barely even notice Mrs. Cope was in the kitchen with me until she coughed. When I turned around she had her hand on her throat and looked to be in pain.

"Are you ok?"

"Uh oh yes dear. My throat is sore that is all."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"Yes well I was just going to start the dinner for tonight then leave early so I can get some medicine in me."

"Oh Edward called and wanted me to let you know that he wont be home till around eight or so."

"Not six? Oh dear I was really wanting to go home considering that I'm not feeling my best… oh well dinner will be ready by eight then."

Seeing Mrs. Cope having to stay longer when she wasn't feeling good just broke my heart. And I like to cook so I made a suggestion.

"Mrs. Cope I can cook dinner tonight that way you can go home and rest."

"Oh no dear I couldn't do that to you."

She waved her hand at me dismissively.

"I insist besides I love to cook and it will give me something to do."

"Well okay dear if you are absolutely sure you are fine with this."

I smiled really big just to let her know that it was no big deal.

"I hope you get to feeling better."

"Thank you dear… well I guess I will go to the house then."

We walked into the foyer and she went to get her coat and purse out of the coat closet. Once she put it on and her purse was over her shoulder she waved at me and walked out the door.

It wasn't till then that I noticed how silent the house was which I have to say kind of got to me.

Why would Edward… who lived all by his self ever need such a big home…. Wasteful!

Deciding that I needed some kind of sound flowing thru the house I decided to turn on radio.

I walked into the living room and went to the entertainment center oh the right of the TV was this really expensive stereo system… the kind that would be really expensive to replace if I broke it.

I wasn't exactly sure how to work it with the remote control that was sitting on top so I just manually pushed the buttons which was easier said then done.

Nothing was self explanatory on these high tech radios so I just pushed a number of buttons I thought was right until finally music came out of the speakers.

It was reading a CD and to my surprise it was old music from the seventies and eighties.

Which didn't bother me at all considering that one of the first song that came on was Journey and then it went to Bad Company.

I have to say Edward has great taste in music.

I turned the music up loud enough to where I could hear it in the kitchen and began my work. I wasn't sure what to fix so I looked around in the ice box and cabinets till I was able to put a full recipe together… which wasn't hard considering the fact that Edwards kitchen was stocked like a super market.

I pulled out some chicken breast and dug around till I found the grill pan I needed along with a colander and some other pots and utensils.

I sat the grill pan on the stove and clicked it on medium heat then I went to the sink with the chicken and colander and began to rinse it off. Once done I laid the chicken out on a pan and after washing my hands I dug around till I found some different seasonings and some oil.

I poured the oil on the grill pan so it could begin to get hot and seasoned the chicken in the process.

I then sat the chicken on the grill pan and began cooking the rest of the food I need to make this dish complete.

By the time I had got done cooking, cleaning the kitchen back up, setting the table, and turning the radio off it was close to Edward getting home.

I don't know why I felt nervous, but I did.

Maybe because of what happened today with the kiss and the "I love you" or maybe it was the fact he was going to be eating my cooking.

Whatever the reason it didn't sat well with my stomach.

Just then I heard the front door open and a man's voice echo throughout the house due to it being so silent.

I walked around the corner to see Aro and Edward removing there coats and putting them in the coat closet.

I cleared my throat and Aro turned around.

"Aw the lovely Mrs. Bella, how was your day?"

"Just fine thank you."

I smiled sweetly at him and then looked at Edward. Aro seeing where my eyes had been drawn to spoke up.

"Oh I'm sorry I know you two must want a little time together. I need to go and wash up for dinner anyways, whatever it is it smells great."

I watched as Aro walked up the stairs and waited till he was out of sight before I turned back to talk to Edward.

"So…"

I was going to tell him about Mrs. Cope going home sick, but before I could he put his hand up to stop me and then pulled me into the kitchen with him.

"Bella let me start off by saying I'm sorry about earlier today. I mean I know we went over this kind of thing in the contract, and that it was something to be expected, but I still feel as if I need to say sorry for kissing you and telling you that I love you."

Edward had caught me off guard about that and I was to say the least speechless. I didn't know how to respond to that and lucky for me I didn't have to cause just then the phone rang.

Edward walked over to where it was mounted on the wall and picked up the receiver.

"Hello?"

I zoned out for a second while he was on the phone thinking about why he felt the need to apologize. Maybe he felt as if it upset me. After all the it was kind of sudden and unexpected.

"Okay, no don't worry about a thing Mrs. Cope just get to feeling better. Okay bye, bye."

He hung up the phone and turned to look back at me.

"Mrs. Cope isn't feeling well and wont be coming into work tomorrow."

"Yes I kind of figured as much."

He looked at me and then back at the phone and then back at me.

"Oh right… you just heard my conversation with her."

"Actually no I wasn't really paying attention to that, however she did go home sick earlier today so I pretty much knew she wasn't going to be coming in tomorrow."

"Oh so then I guess we got take out for dinner?"

"Actually…. No I cooked dinner tonight."

I looked at Edward and waited nervously to see what he was going to say. After what seemed like hours of silence… though it was really only seconds he answered.

"Well whatever it is it sure smells good."

I could feel my cheeks turn red as I gave him my thanks and turned to walk into the dinning room.

All the food I cooked was set up on the buffet table in warmers so that it wouldn't get cold.

Edward had followed me in here and was just about to say something until he was interrupted by Aro.

**EPOV**

Damn Aro and his timing.

Though I had to wonder rather or not I was really supposed to continue the conversation about the kiss and I love you episode with Bella or not due to the two interruptions.

First the phone and now Aro.

For now I decided to put it on the back burner and go about it a different way and at a later time.

Bella greeted Aro again and offered for him to start serving himself.

I watched as Aro opened the lids to the warmers and took in a deep inhale.

"This smells delightful. I am going to have to give my praises to the cook."

I smiled and stepped in.

"Yes it does smell wonderful. Thank you Bella."

Aro looked up from filling his plate.

"Oh you cooked this lovely dinner?"

"Yes."

Bella blushed ten shades of red and looked down at her hands.

"Well I cant wait to eat this…. Please do tell us what you have made."

Bella cleared her throat and walked over and started to point at the food showing us what each item was.

"Well this is a salad made with fresh green leaf lettuce, ripe tomatoes and crisp cucumbers along with a salty hint of parmesan cheese and drizzled with a light citrus dressing. Over here we have seasoned grilled chicken fettuccine with a creamy white sauce and homemade Italian bread. Then last but not least for desert we have a homemade chocolate turtle cheesecake with thick salty sweet caramel sauce, gooey chocolate and toasted pecans."

When Bell finished describing her food she had made I noticed three things.

One my mouth was watering.

Two she had impressed Aro

And finally number three I began to think of how great it would be to come home to this every night.

Dinner was silent as far as words go, but you could hear forks sliding across plates and refills of wine in glasses.

Mostly Aro's glass. I noticed Bella would only start off with half a glass of red wine and then once that was gone she would switch to drinking water.

After Aro took his last bit of cheesecake he sat the fork down on the plate and wiped his mouth with his napkin.

"Well Mrs. Bella that was delicious. Edward if your wife can cook like this then I can see I need to come visit more often my boy."

I could hear Bella giggle to herself and I felt my lips raise at the corners…. Something about her being happy made me happy.

Fuck!

This shit is weird.

Its just a fucking damn contract made so that I can get this company and Bella can get some money…. End of story.

Now if I could just remember that and stick to the damn thing we would have no problem.

Bella started to pick up the dishes and Aro made to help when she told him to sit down she could get it and that as a guest she didn't want him doing any work.

He quickly complied and I took that as my que to step in when Bella had disappeared into the kitchen.

"Aro how about you go to the living room and I will be out there as soon as I help Bella."

"Sure no problem I want to pick up where I left off on that book last night anyways."

With that he excused himself and I picked up the remainder of the dishes and met Bella in the kitchen where I seen she was bent over loading the dishwasher.

I would be lying if I say I didn't look at her ass.

I walked over and placed the dishes I had in my hands in with the rest of them.

As she started the dishwasher and wiped down the counter I remembered I was in here for one reason.

"Bella I never got to finish what I wanted to say earlier to you…"

But before I could finish she interrupted me.

"Edward you don't have to apologize I get it. We signed a contract and both went over what was going to have to be done when in public or in front of Aro. Its fine."

She smiled at me and turned and walked out of the kitchen.

It made me relieved to hear that Bella was ok with this, but deep down inside I was starting to wonder why it also hurt that she reminded me it was only a contract.

**AN:**

**Ok so that chapter 9... Moving slow I know, but I have to build it up to get to the good parts.**

**Anyways leave me some love and let me know what you all think!**

**Till next time **


	10. In Other News

**A/N:**

**Say What?**

**Another Chapter update so soon?**

**Yep lol sure is… yall better be lucky that I am once again single and bored out of my mind to where all I have to do for fun is write…. Lol! Well not really, but it does help on the weekends when I have no plans or to broke to go out lol!**

**Also I write everyone who reviews my story back, however some of you I couldn't because you sign in as a guest or have your PM turned off. So for all the ones that I couldn't write back do to those reasons thank you so much for your reviews and I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this chapter!**

**Anyways I really am sorry for all the errors, but I don't have a beta and have no clue how to proceed with getting one….. Anyone who knows how to do the whole beta thing and would like to educate me on it would be wonderful!**

**DISCLAIMER**

**I don't own Twilight or any of its characters!**

**Chapter 10**

**In Other News**

**EPOV**

I fumbled around on the floor trying to find my phone to shut the damn alarm off… five thirty really did come to early.

Once my alarm was turned off I sat up on the cot and stretched my arms over my head. Though the cot in my closet that I was sleeping on was still damaging my back…. I have to admit it was a hell of a lot better then the cold hard floor.

I had this moved in here while me and Aro where at the office along with all of Bella's stuff… which surprisingly was more then I thought she had, but then again she did go shopping with Alice. I figured me and Bella was going to have to tuff this out and it turned out I was right.

Aro was once again sitting in the same chair in the living room reading his book like he did the night before. Realizing that we were stuck like chuck again and he would see that we would be walking in separate rooms I tried to work out a strategy. The plan was that I would keep Aro distracted so that Bella could go up to her room, but when Bella announced that she was heading to bed Aro made the comment on how he would walk her to our room because he was heading to his room to get his reading glasses. After that I just said fuck it and was glad that I made the arrangement for the cot in the closet.

I quietly opened the door letting the light drift thru the closet from the muted TV that was left on and seen Bella was still sleeping. Once again she was in my boxers and shirt… which I wanted to peel off of her and…. Fuck I need some pussy, but knowing that I couldn't because this contract instead I opted for going to the bathroom and taking a shower. By the time I took my shower-spending way more time then need be in there do to me needing some release-and went thru my usually morning routine of shaving it was already 6:15. I wrapped the towel around my waist and walked out into the room. Bella was still sound a sleep and I was just about to go to the closet to dress when I noticed that the channel Bella left the TV on was playing the local news.

Thinking nothing of it I picked up the remote from the night stand where Bella had sat it and turned the volume from mute to a tone that was low enough to where it wouldn't disturb Bella, but that I could hear it.

I watched for a few minutes and realized that the news was the same everyday… they did the local weather and then some breaking news story… yesterday it was how some idiot bastard tried to rob a bank…. Today it would probably be much of the same due to living in the city of Seattle.

I decided to forgo watching what the citizens of this city did to make the headlines and started to walk towards the closet until I seen a picture of my face flash up on the corner of the widescreen TV.

I stopped to see what they would say about me this time… usually it was talking about some event I donated money to or how I was supposed to appear at this party or what I wore at this social even and so on so I wasn't to worried about it till I seen another picture flash up on the screen of me that had the image of my hand zoomed in on and showing the wedding ring on my finger.

That's when I grabbed the remote and turned the TV up so I could hear what the blonde haired woman had to say.

"In other news it seems that long time bachelor Edward Mason has finally settled down and tied the knot. That story and more coming up after the break."

What the fuck? How could this have gotten out? I recognized that the pictures were taken of me when I was at Eclipse having lunch, but who could have taken them and better yet how did the news get a hold of them?

Somebody's head is going to roll!

I waited for the news to come back on while pacing the floor till it finally did.

"Is Edward Masen finally married? We join Leah on scene to find out."

I watched as the scene switched over to a lady who happened to be standing in front of my house.

What the fuck?

I went over to the window and pulled the drapes back and peaked thru the blinds… sure enough over the long stretch of driveway and in front of the heavy iron closed gates to my house was a news van and three people.

One of whom was the girl named Leah.

"Thanks Sandy! As you can see I am standing outside of Mason Manor where he and his lucky new wife reside. Ladies get out your tissues it appears that multi-millionaire Edward Masen is now off the market. Just who is this mystery woman? No one knows as of now or how long they have been married. One thing for sure is that who ever this mystery lady is she will be the envy of every woman in Seattle. More details to come as the story unfolds…. Im Leah Clearwater on scene… Back to you Sandy. "

The scene switched back to the lady in the studio.

"Thanks Leah. Here is a picture of the lucky new bride and Edward giving her a kiss."

When the picture popped up of Bella and me I lost it and with out even thinking I picked up the vase nearest to me and threw it at the wall while screaming profanities.

**BPOV**

_CRASH_

"SON OF A MOTHER FUCKING COCK SUCKING BITCH!"

Once I was able to get my bearings it took me a second before I realized that I was actually on the floor and not in the bed anymore.

Something had startled me to the point I fell on my butt trying to get out of the bed as quickly as I could.

I made a move to get up and turned onto my knees when I felt big warm hands on me and my back up against something hard.

"Fuck Bella im sorry I forgot you were still sleeping."

Edward said as he lifted me up off the floor. That was when I noticed the shattered vase of flowers on the floor and water leaking down the wall from where it had hit.

What the heck happened?

I was about to turn around and ask him until I felt something hit my foot…. When I looked down on the floor to see what it was I realized it was a towel.

Not just any towel, but his towel.

Edwards towel!

I started to move, but then I felt Edwards hands tighten around my waist and felt his breath at my ear as he whispered.

"Don't move Bella."

I felt a tingle go up my spine and my breathing hitch. I kept looking straight ahead even though my curiosity wanted to me look at Edward's naked body. It would be really awkward and yet at the same time interesting… you see I have never seen a mans penis in person before… I mean sure I have on TV… I watched porn before, but that's because I was only curious. However to see one in front of me…. Especially Edward's… the idea did appeal to me.

My thought pattern quickly changed when I heard Edward let out a low deep breath and felt his hands slowly slide from my waist leaving a warm feeling in its wake and making my skin have goose bumps. The towel was removed from my foot and I heard the door to the right of me shut.

I slowly looked around making sure the coast was clear and then with my shaky legs took a few steps towards the bed and sat down… all the while waiting for Edward to come back out.

I was disoriented from being woke up so abruptly and then in shock from have a naked man…. Not just any naked man, but Edward behind me. I could feel him thru the thin fabric of the boxer shorts I was wearing.

It was odd, but at the same time a wonderful feeling… a unknown feeling, but one that I would welcome… it made me wonder why I didn't already give my virginity up.

Because I didn't date. Duh Bella! You have to date to actually be able to get that far.

A few minutes later Edward come out fully dressed in a suit and looked straight towards the window. He walked by me not saying a word and slowly opened the blinds letting the sunlight in.

"I don't mean to worry you, but we made headlines."

He said while looking out the window and running one of his hands thru his messy hair.

What? I am so confused right now… I figured Edward would have came out and said something about what just happened with the towel, however he never even approached the subject. Maybe that was a good thing. Save me and him both some embarrassment. Although that still didn't clear up the confusion on what he said to me.

"huh?"

I wasn't following what he was talking about until he stepped away from the window and with the remote he backed up the TV all the way till I seen a picture of his face.

I watched with wide eyes as I seen the news and the pictures of us on there…. How could this have happened?

And what's worse is what is going to happen when Aro sees this?

I felt panic pass thru me and my stomach start to churn.

"Edward what are we going to do?"

He sighed as he sat down next to me on the bed.

"The only thing we can do… we have to face the press head on. Im going to call my lawyer and we will get some kind of interview set up with the news and answer any questions they may have. Just let me handle it."

He sighed and ran his fingers through his messy copper hair and tugged on the ends.

"Life was a lot less complicated before all this with you and this damn contract! I was free to do what the hell I wanted or who the hell I wanted. I didn't have to worry about coming home to my house and pretend that I am married. I didn't have to give up my bed and sleep on that fucking hard cot. I didn't have people out in front of my house from the news doing a breaking story over me."

He stood up and went back over to the window.

His words stung me and I could feel the lump rise up in my throat.

Don't cry Bella please don't let him see you cry.

I swallowed hard and looked over at him. The more I thought about his words the more I went from hurt to angry. How dare this bastard! He was the one who gave me no choice, but to expect his proposition and I was fixing to remind him of that!

I got up off the bed and walked over to him. I put my hand on his shoulder and with all my strength -which wasn't a lot- I some how managed to turn him away from the window so that he was facing me.

"Look here Edward you are not the only one who has had to sacrifice your way of life. I too had to make some big changes. I left my disabled father back in Forks to come here to Seattle to try to be this perfect rich bitch wife of yours and this whole fucking contract was your idea! It wasn't mine! You gave me no choice in the matter. It was either this or you press charges on me."

I could see the angry fire swirling around in his eyes, but that was okay because im sure my eyes matched his.

"You were the one who came in my office and hit me Isabella! I just merely offered you a choice. You choose to accept this. Besides you are getting richly rewarded for doing this and all you have to do is use my money to go shopping, lay around my lavish house, and pretend to be my wife without having to do any of the wifely duties. Not that hard of a job for the amount of money you are going to be leaving with."

My anger was bubbling over and I was beyond control of my actions at this point. I poked my finger in his chest as hard as I could over and over and raised my voice.

"That was because you are an asshole and chose to close down the warehouse. That was my only income Edward along with a lot of other peoples."

Edward went to interrupt me, but I quickly continued talking before he had a chance to. However he did restrain my hands with his bringing them down to my sides and he drew me closer to so that I couldn't poke him, all the while making my breast brush up against his chest.

"I know you said that we do what we can with the cards we are dealt Edward, but things change and sometimes you trade in your cards in hopes of getting better ones only to get worse ones. Do you think my dad planned to get hurt in the line of duty? No he didn't! Do you think he wanted his daughter to have to give up her own dreams of going to college and making a life for herself to keep are household up and running. No he didn't Edward. However some people just don't have the good cards. I don't expect you to understand because you were born with all this already in place. You had a hand full of aces. Everything you have you might have had to work to keep it, but you already had it. Im not saying that its easy for you, but you were born with choices that a lot of people don't have."

When I was finished I took a long breath and refilled my lungs with oxygen. It didn't escape me that Edward still hadn't let me go from his hold and now that I had stopped my rant I had seen just how close we really were.

"Bella you are right and im sorry. This is just all new to me. I never had to worry about anyone other then myself and im not used to it. I know that my words hurt you, but you have to realize that im under a lot of stress with this. I know this is hard for both of us, but we are going to have to put are differences aside and suck it up. Im preaching at myself just as much as Im preaching to you. We are going to have to work together to make this work."

I could feel Edwards warm breath on my lips due to his close proximity. I found it to be very distracting of the current situation. I inhaled slowly and closed my eyes to better focus. It was then that I realized he was right. We did have to work together on this. Besides as soon as this was over I could get my money and never have to see him again.

However because Edward was driving me crazy and not letting me go I decided it was time to play him at his own little game. He knew what he was doing to me and he knew that my body reacted to his touch. No matter how small or innocent the touch was.

"You are right Edward." I said as I stood up on my tiptoes and moved my mouth closer to his. "So in the best interest of making this contract work we should just try to get along….right?" I had my mouth so close to his I could feel his lips brush up against mine when I talked.

I had seen Edward start to close his eyes and felt his grip loosen on my hands enough to where I could pull away then. So instead of kissing him like he thought I was about to do I smiled against his lips and pulled away from him and out of his grasp.

I watched as he opened his eyes and looked at me.

"You are a piece of work you know that? Like a fucking modern day Aphrodite or Hathor!"

"Weren't they the goddess's of seduction and pleasure in Greek and Egyptian history?"

"Yeah something along those lines."

Edward said as he turned to look out the window again.

"Wow then I guess I should take that as a compliment considering I have never really been good at that sort of thing.."

Edward turned and looked at me.

"Well you know with me being a virgin and all I really haven't had much practice in that area."

"Oh right. Well before we get to deep into this conversation I need to go downstairs to see if Aro has caught wind of any of this."

Edward started walking towards the door, but before he opened it he looked at me one last time.

"Bella don't be so hard on yourself about the whole seduction thing… you are better at it then you think you are."

I smiled and felt my checks turn crimson.

"You really think so?"

"Yeah its either that or I am just really vulnerable in that area cause I haven't had pussy in a week or so.'

I wrinkled my nose in disgust and chunked a pillow at him from off the bed.

"Edward you are freaking sick get out."

He simply maneuvered around the pillow and laughed as he opened the door and shut it behind him as he walked out into the hallway.

I couldn't help, but laugh myself. Not at his gross words, but because I knew the effect I had on him by his body language earlier. He wasn't fooling no one!

I got off the bed and went about getting ready for the day all the while thinking about Edward and how disgusting he was and how angry he had made me, but also how he made me laugh and how my heart sped up when he touched me and how my body reacted to him.

This was getting more complicated by the day and now all this with the news and us making headlines…. There was no doubt about it I felt like a reckless child who was playing with fire.

**A/N**

**Okay that's chapter 10**

**What did you guys think?**

**Be sure to leave me some love and let me know! I love hearing from you guys!**

**Also don't forget I need to find out how to get a beta so if anyone can help with that or would even like to volunteer to be my beta I would be forever thankful. Just pm me. Until next time folks!**

**Oh yeah only what like 15 days till Christmas left… crazy!**

**I have a few more gifts to buy and then im done which is like a new world record for me because the last few years I have been shopping all the way up until Christmas eve night.**

**Did yall get all yall's shopping done yet?**


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